Perverse Medical Negligence Judgments are the Bane of Modern Medicine

Practice of modern medicine is highly complex. Recent advances in individual field of medicine have greatly increased its technical and clinical complexity. Medical negligence cases, as per present day judicial norms, are judged by lay persons, at all levels, District Consumer Forum to Supreme Court. Let alone the technical (medical) complexities of treatment modalities and interventions, the judges lack even elemental knowledge of human body, its parts, systems and functions etc.

Lay complainants’ allegations, there fore, make greater sense to them than al the clinical details of the case placed before the court in form of a chronological transcript of medical case file of the patient. It is impossible for the respondent doctor to recreate real time case details for the court to understand. Lacking biology science background they are inherently incapable of understanding it. Their limitations are understandable. Yet, they have to justitiate.