I just read the literature about doctors' suicides and I am not surprised. Doctors have the highest rates of suicide in among all professions and worse....nothing gets done about it such as for others like
1. some sensible rules or laws for doctors working conditions
2. some sensible guidelines for welfare during training
3. any way to access help confidentially when they need it
One of the things that makes doctors breakdown so much is the continuous and unrelenting work schedule- designed to kill the most robust individual. So the most useful intervention could be to reduce the working hours, if a doctor can afford to do it. But the mobile phone works like a leash and a doctor continues to work outside of the declared working hours too.
In India- a combination of patient unsophistication (sometimes a plain lack of good manners) and easy availability of the doctor's mobile phone number has made it impossible for doctors to get away and get some peace of mind. Patients are constantly trying to get that little bit more of the doctors attention easily and possibly without paying. And even if one charged for the telephonic consultation, how much should be reimbursed for disruption of activities like a much-needed nap, playing with your child or simply a good scene in a movie. Once the patient starts calling, the calls are repeated till you answer them- no sense of keeping the phone on silent mode. Being human we tend to get worried by the time its a second call from the same number flashing and will drop everything to answer it. 99pc of the times it is some silly question like when can we meet you or are you coming to the clinic tomorrow. This is all the more vexing when one has hired the services of a 24hour helpline to answer exactly these queries. Patients always fail to save this number but unerringly save the doctors mobile number.
The psychological warfare unleashed by patients if you fail to answer their calls is persistent, subtle and chips away at the morale. They will make sure to let you know how you were responsible for their horrible suffering, responsible for not getting timely help, abandoned them in their time of need, etc etc etc. The truth is that no emergency treatment can be given on phone as proper examination is not possible and it is also illegal. And why bother the doctor and insist for immediate attention when there is no emergency? So emergency or no emergency, telephoning the doctor is not required unless it is by prior arrangement for specific non- emergency purpose only.
So one has to be really quite firm and unwavering about deciding the boundaries between business hours and personal life. The trojan horse called telephone notwithstanding. The telephone assisted beck and call system enforced upon Indian doctors will kill many of them some day.
1. some sensible rules or laws for doctors working conditions
2. some sensible guidelines for welfare during training
3. any way to access help confidentially when they need it
One of the things that makes doctors breakdown so much is the continuous and unrelenting work schedule- designed to kill the most robust individual. So the most useful intervention could be to reduce the working hours, if a doctor can afford to do it. But the mobile phone works like a leash and a doctor continues to work outside of the declared working hours too.
In India- a combination of patient unsophistication (sometimes a plain lack of good manners) and easy availability of the doctor's mobile phone number has made it impossible for doctors to get away and get some peace of mind. Patients are constantly trying to get that little bit more of the doctors attention easily and possibly without paying. And even if one charged for the telephonic consultation, how much should be reimbursed for disruption of activities like a much-needed nap, playing with your child or simply a good scene in a movie. Once the patient starts calling, the calls are repeated till you answer them- no sense of keeping the phone on silent mode. Being human we tend to get worried by the time its a second call from the same number flashing and will drop everything to answer it. 99pc of the times it is some silly question like when can we meet you or are you coming to the clinic tomorrow. This is all the more vexing when one has hired the services of a 24hour helpline to answer exactly these queries. Patients always fail to save this number but unerringly save the doctors mobile number.
The psychological warfare unleashed by patients if you fail to answer their calls is persistent, subtle and chips away at the morale. They will make sure to let you know how you were responsible for their horrible suffering, responsible for not getting timely help, abandoned them in their time of need, etc etc etc. The truth is that no emergency treatment can be given on phone as proper examination is not possible and it is also illegal. And why bother the doctor and insist for immediate attention when there is no emergency? So emergency or no emergency, telephoning the doctor is not required unless it is by prior arrangement for specific non- emergency purpose only.
So one has to be really quite firm and unwavering about deciding the boundaries between business hours and personal life. The trojan horse called telephone notwithstanding. The telephone assisted beck and call system enforced upon Indian doctors will kill many of them some day.
