World Doctor’s day that is celebrated on July 1 every year, is an opportunity to raise awareness about the doctor’s role in our daily lives – a day when people across the country acknowledge the commitment and dedication of the medical and healthcare fraternity towards society. The Doctor’s Day is the time to pay tribute to the entire medical profession. From dentists to neurosurgeons, homoeopaths to heart specialists, physicians to paediatricians. This is in commemoration of the birth Anniversary of Eminent Physician and Patriot Dr. BC Roy. It is a special and an ideal opportunity to remind people of the critical role doctor’s play in our lives. It is also a time for doctors to reflect on their own careers, realise their responsibility they bear and redirect themselves onto an ethical path of healing those in need.
India is unique in the sense that patients revere their doctors’ majority of whom are sincere, honest and ethical. The concept of ‘Family Physician’ is more or less extinct in India. It is imperative for both patients and doctors to work together on re-establishing some of the lost trust, and truly, there could be no better day than Doctors’ Day to reinforce the unique relationship between the doctor and patient. Reverence for human life and individual dignity is both the hallmark of a good physician and the key to truly beneficial advances in medicine.
Doctors play an important role in our society. When you get ill the most important person in life is the doctor. A doctor performs diagnosis and treatment. He cares for the patient and keeps them well. It is not enough just to pay the bill or say “Thanks” for doctors are the life saviours who strive tirelessly to cure the ailments of the patients. This day is the perfect time for patients to acknowledge the high-pressured job and appreciate their doctor’s ability to comfort and heal.
It is observed that doctors are more often the victims of criticism while their successes are overlooked. No doubt, it is a fact that the medical profession carries a heavy responsibility with it, but people need to understand that behind the white coat and stethoscope is a normal human being and like in all other professions, doctors too need appreciation for their work and efforts.
The patient trusts and places his life in the hands of the doctor. On many occasions, the patient discloses confidential information to the doctor which he/she might or might not have discussed with his/her spouse or family member. In no other profession does the individual place so much trust and faith. In some regions, particularly in rural India, the doctor is equated with God. The doctor is, therefore, duty-bound to have a higher level of moral code of conduct than those in other professions and must understand that he/she is in a very privileged position.
Doctor’s Day is also a significant day for doctors themselves as it provides them with an opportunity to revitalise and rededicate themselves to the practice of medicine. Doctors in India over the years have shown remarkable improvements and made definite progress in medical treatments that really need to be acknowledged.
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
