Unauthorised practice of medical students and house surgeons in private hospitals and clinics during night-time has come to light in several districts of Kerala, raising concerns about patients’ safety.
Complaints have been registered with the police in Alappuzha and Kozhikode districts. While a medical intern attached to a private medical college was found to be prescribing medicines to patients at a private hospital at Balussery in Kozhikode, similar instances were noticed at more places in Alappuzha.
Functionaries of the General Practitioners Association (GPA), who have taken up the issue with the authorities, pointed out that such actions would have serious professional and legal implications.
Ashik Basheer, State joint secretary, GPA, told The Hindu on Tuesday that medical students were not authorised to practice on their own at any place. “After they complete four-and-a-half years of studies in medical colleges, these students are mandated to do internship there for a year under the supervision of a senior doctor. For doing so, they are given a provisional registration by the Kerala State Medical Councils (KSMC). Even then, the senior doctor will be held responsible for any error or lapse on their part,” he said. A few students, who study in medical colleges in other parts of the country, sometimes get a no-objection certificate from the authorities and do the internship in Kerala as well.
Some interns and medical students, however, are lured by certain private hospitals and clinics to do night duty independently for a couple of hours. “There are some WhatsApp groups where such job alerts are posted. These interns and students grab the opportunity. They are paid a couple of hundreds for each day, which they consider to be some sort of pocket money. This is profitable for the hospitals as a professional doctor will have to be paid more for night duty,” Dr. Basheer said.
The GPA functionaries said that the students and interns often don’t realise the professional, legal, and academic impact of such actions, which may lead to medical errors with life-threatening consequences. The hospital managements would not support them. The KSMC can even suspend or cancel their registration and the Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS) too can take action against them. A team of GPA members recently met Mohanan Kunnumal, Vice-Chancellor, KUHS, highlighting their concerns.
