THE HELPLESSNESS OF THE HELPERS

The recent suicide by Dr. Anoop Krishna, a 35 years old orthopedic surgeon from Kerala brings to fore some very pertinent issues.

It takes decades of hard work to achieve a medical degree and many more decades to earn a reputation and goodwill in the society. Unfortunately, today all it takes is one surreptitious photograph or an offensive video for years of toil to go down in the drain. Character assassination of doctors to tarnish their reputation on social media is becoming increasingly common when the outcomes of treatment are not favourable.

Complications are a part of all surgeries and they are not the same as negligence.
We understand that for the concerned family it is difficult to come terms with the loss of a loved one. However, resorting to violence, character assassination and threatening, is completely uncalled for. As per IMA, almost 75%of doctors in India have faced some form of violence. 68% of this violence is caused by the escorts of the patients.

Losing a patient is never easy for any doctor too. Constantly working with sickness and death eventually takes an emotional toll. Increasing levels of stress in a doctor’s life is not only damaging to them but also to their spouses and families. In the case of Dr. Anoop Krishna a son lost his father, a wife lost her husband and the community lost a humane and talented doctor.

He scribbled the word “sorry” on his bathroom wall before he breathed his last. When one doctor is pushed to a suicide, hundreds are pushed away from medicine. And even a million sorries by the society will not be able to make up for this loss.

Dr. Aparna Govil Bhasker