Medico-legal and ethical issues in anaesthesiology profession

Abstract

Extant legislation, professional and societal ethics provide fundamental guidance to professionals in practising their profession. Legal rules are enforced by courts of law whereas rules of ethics are enforced by professional bodies like the Medical Council of India (now National Medical Commission). In this article, we explore some of the principal guidelines that regulate medical ethics. The role of informed written consent is vital in safeguarding the patient as well the doctor's interests; the approach for getting consent will differ depending on patient and procedure. Medical records document every aspect of the patient's history and details of the procedure and are the only means to settle disputes as they provide legitimate, real-time and accurate details of events that have occurred in the past. Although not explicitly listed as a 'service' in the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), healthcare-related complaints can be filed under the Consumer court and the precedent has been established that it is a service. CPA of 2019 provides detailed regulations for performing scrutiny of cases, fines that can be levied, the directives for seeking compensation, etc., Every anaesthesiologist must have some knowledge of law and ethics in order to protect himself/herself from avoidable litigation or disciplinary action.

Keywords: Consumer Protection Act; medical records; medico-legal issues; role of consent; role of ethics.