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Medical Council of India
Notification - 2002
2. DUTIES OF PHYSICIANS TO THEIR
PATIENTS
2.1 Obligations to the Sick:
2.1.1 Though a physician is not
bound to treat each and every person asking his services, he should not only be ever ready to respond to
the calls of the sick and the injured, but should be mindful of the
high character of his mission and the responsibility he discharges in the
course of his professional duties. In his treatment, he should never forget
that the health and the lives of those entrusted to his care depend on his
skill and attention. A physician should endeavour to add to the comfort of
the sick by making his visits at the hour indicated to the patients. A
physician advising a patient to seek service of another physician is
acceptable, however, in case of emergency a physician must treat the patient.
No physician shall arbitrarily refuse treatment to a patient. However for
good reason, when a patient is suffering from an ailment which is not within
the range of experience of the treating physician, the physician may refuse treatment and refer the
patient to another physician.
2.1.2
Medical practitioner having any incapacity detrimental to the patient or
which can affect his performance vis-à-vis the patient is not permitted to
practice his profession.
2.2 Patience, Delicacy and
Secrecy : Patience and delicacy should characterize the physician.
Confidences concerning individual or domestic life entrusted by patients to a
physician and defects in the disposition or character of patients observed
during medical attendance should never be revealed unless their revelation is
required by the laws of the State. Sometimes, however, a physician must
determine whether his duty to society requires him to employ knowledge,
obtained through confidence as a physician, to protect a healthy person
against a communicable disease to which he is about to be exposed. In such
instance, the physician should act as he would wish another to act toward one
of his own family in like circumstances.
2.3 Prognosis: The physician
should neither exaggerate nor minimize the gravity of a patient’s condition.
He should ensure himself that the patient, his relatives or his responsible
friends have such knowledge of the patient’s condition as will serve the best
interests of the patient and the family.
2.4 The Patient must not be
neglected: A physician is free to choose whom he will serve. He should,
however, respond to any request for his assistance in an emergency. Once
having undertaken a case, the physician should not neglect the patient, nor
should he withdraw from the case without giving adequate notice to the
patient and his family. Provisionally or fully registered medical
practitioner shall not willfully commit an act of negligence that may deprive his patient or patients from necessary
medical care.
2.5 Engagement for an Obstetric
case: When a physician who has been engaged to attend an obstetric case is absent and another is sent for and
delivery accomplished, the acting physician is entitled to his
professional fees, but should secure the patient’s consent to resign on the
arrival of the physician engaged.
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