ARE WE TRADING MEDICAL PROFESSION?

Dr.T.V.Rao MD
The words "profession" and "professional" come from the Latin word
"professio," which means a public declaration with the force of a promise?
Professions are groups which declare in a public way that their members
promise to act in certain ways and that the group and the society may
discipline those who fail to do so. The profession presents itself to society as a
social benefit and society accepts the profession, expecting it to serve some
important social goal. The profession usually issues a code of ethics stating the
standards by which its members can be judged. The traditional professions are
medicine, law, education and clergy. With the changing society many things
are linked with money, power and professionalism takes a back seat and
ultimately the profession loosing values and in turn certainly effects many of
our future. We see many people walk with power knows little on matters
concerned to the patients. However to be a professional is difficult, it was
thought Medicine is about compassion, service, altruism, and trustworthiness,
values that have always and will continue to guide the profession. These values
are the basis for the principles, duties and policies that follow. However,
medicine is more than procedures and physicians are more than executors of
technology. Compassion is fundamental to the relationship between the
patient and the doctor. Compassion is defined as a deep awareness of the
suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it. The best words I
listened from a Great Professor of urology Dr Bhatt when he was awarded life
time achievement he said I have only message to all the young Doctors think
you are on the opposite side of the table, never forget we are all potential
patients for future, do you expect the same behaviour as you are practising,
with your self-interests, violating all the established principles of Medical
Profession. When we are less knowledged and greedy we trade with our
qualification and the power which we are sitting, in reality to serve their
patients, physicians must be competent in the medical areas in which they
practice. Competence requires the application of current knowledge with
requisite skill and judgment needed to meet the patients medical needs. In
this, physicians should strive for excellence or at least minimally competence.
Physicians, as a profession, also have a collective responsibility to the public,
which is demonstrated by collaborating with and supporting colleagues and
other health professionals, and participating in self-regulation in the public

interest. The profession has a critical responsibility to the public as a whole via
its responsibility to regulate. Just as doctors serve patients, the College, as the
representative of the profession in self-regulation, has the ethical and
statutory responsibility to serve the public by regulating physicians in the
public interest. Todays conflicts and litigations in Medical profession are just
many times associated with lack Trustworthiness and it is the cornerstone of
the practice of medicine. It is the demonstration of compassion, service and
altruism that earns the medical profession the trust of the public. This trust
manifests itself in the social contract between the profession and the public, as
well as the relationship an individual patient has with his or her doctor.
Maintaining trust is an important aspect of medical professionalism. Patients
must be able to trust that the physician will always uphold the values of the
profession; in the absence of the trusting relationship the physician cannot
help the patient and the patient cannot benefit from the relationship. The
Institutes and Administrators spare a little of Time to improve professionalism
in the Institutes they run, never forget no trade sustains for long without
ethics. Best of the Institutes in Developing countries have concentrated on
Altruism, as a principle of action, is the highest commitment to service.
Altruism in medicine is defined as practising unselfishly and with a regard for
others. Patients needs are paramount and must be considered before the
individual physicians needs, the needs of physicians as a group, or the public
as a whole. This is not to say that physicians must sacrifice their health or other
important aspects of their life for their patients. Rather, it means that when
providing care to a patient, a physician should always put that patient first.
Today most advanced Nations and profession believe more in ethics than just
practice of profession for little unsustainable materialistic gains. Never forget
no Institution sustains without competence and few ethical principles
incorporated in Professionalism. We all have taken Hippocratic Oath and lost
all the will to practice a little of it?
Ref Values of the Profession the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
Dr.T.V.Rao MD Professor of Microbiology Freelance writer