The dark side of doctor commissions and the godsend doctors

We have heard about instances where doctors have suggested medicines or shops to patients to earn commissions or goodies. Today I am narrating you one such small incident which happened with me in 2012. So let me take you into this dark side of the medical profession. 

This thing happened in AIIMS Delhi. I suffer from something since birth (I won’t disclose the condition name because it puts me into severe depression every time I think of it because of the kind of sympathy I have seen in people’s eyes). Medical science was not that much advanced in the 1980s so my condition was never diagnosed with the correct name and further the lady doctor who diagnosed it, put me on the wrong treatment so that my condition became bad and never recovered. By the time I figured it out on my own to correct it out it was too late as a body was too developed to undergo any more changes. 

Once I experienced some side of strain in my vertebra so much that it became tough for me to either set straight for a couple of days. Along with my relative when I went to the doctor for follow-up, in a low voice she tugged me on to ask the doctor about any possible treatment for my condition. Having heard “No” so many times from different people I decided against it but the Dr heard me. He asked me what was the matter and reluctantly I told him about my condition. He said to me that there is a probable treatment to this condition and I should see a doctor (specialists are). For the first time in so many decades I actually saw a ray of hope but quickly dismissed it because I didn’t want to be heartbroken once again. Later I went to AIIMS (was residing in Delhi then). Did a bit of research and found a connection to a particular doctor because its a huge institution and its best if you know the doctor whom you want to seek. 

So one day we were outside the OPD even before the official timings and there were no bouncers at that time to regulate the patient count. The doctor hadn’t arrived in yet and we were waiting. Suddenly I saw a man come up to the doctor table and put a visiting card of some sort on his table. That person was doing the same for all the doctors on that floor because the department was the same. After 10 minutes the doctor came, saw me, diagnosed me and handed me over the same card which was lying there saying, “Get the tests done from this place, it’s a good one”. That immediately showed me the true picture of doctors suggesting test centres of whosoever`s card was lying on the table. The cut, commission and everything would be worked out later on. 

I never proceeded with the tests because what the doctor had diagnosed was basic info and nothing specific to my condition. I’ll tell you how and this might stray away from the main topic of this post, the point of which has already been proven but would also show you another side. Having been rejected at India’s biggest medical institution, I really sank but my relative egged me on to try other places too. This time she took me to Gangaram Hospital and even though I don’t remember his name but he nailed my condition within just 30 seconds of me telling him about it. He was so astonished to see me talking, doing all the normal things that he called his batch of junior resident doctors to show me as an example. Would you believe that in his room I was a living subject in front of a group of 10 students (males and females)?. 

When I asked the doctor as to why so many inquiries were being made about me and why everybody was astonished to see me alive and talking, he simply said that the condition which I was suffering from was so dangerous for growth that had it happened the way it usually goes on, I should not have grown up mentally at all ever in the normal course of life. It was my bit of good luck that the thing happened at another place in my body and not where it usually strikes children. So I grew up as any normal child would but with that ailment. He also told me the body system it normally affects. The doctor was specialist in one area but actually had a good knowledge of multiple medical areas. For the first time in my life I actually knew the name of my ailment and decided to go to AIIMS once again but to the specific department with which my ailment dealt, this time. The doctor this time too was quite good and he put me on few medicines which I took for some years and then discontinued because follow-up at AIIMS was not possible later on in the years. 

So you can see that in one post I took you to a journey of both sides of the medical profession and whenever I read about these type of commission scams happening between doctors and MRs , test centres I know that it’s true and its a never ending web. In the present era you are very fortunate to find knowledgeable doctors who know a lot about their and other fields also and even after 7+ years I still thank that Dr at Ganga Ram and my treating doctor at AIIMS for providing me with my correct diagnosis so that I don’t feel disappointed whenever I think about the ailment.