Medicolegal Conclave Survey: Testimony of Plight and Injustice Faced by Medical Professionals

Background: Only 6% of doctors are happy with their jobs.They commit suicide at twice the rate of the general population.Over half are unsure they would recommend the practice of medicine to young people (Goodman, 2014).Doctors in India have at least 10 years shorter lifespans than an average individual (Ventriglio et al., 2020).Previous survey done by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) including 12,200 IMA members across India reports that 82.7% of doctors in India are stressed out in their profession, out of which 46.3% fear violence and 24.2% fear being sued.Objective: This survey was done by the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) Medicolegal Group to bring the plight of medical community to the surface.This survey is different from earlier surveys done by different forums that were focused on limited issues of violence and stress, but the present multifaceted survey has a wide horizon and addresses all untouched issues in a holistic manner.Methods: This survey named "Medicolegal Conclave Survey" was conducted by the "IAP National Medicolegal Group" in 2023, in which a Google Form was used to share personal information as well as 20 questions in a questionnaire, all of which were mandatory to answer.Questions were MCQ-based and aimed at seeking the opinion of participant doctors on the plight of medical professionals that they suffer in day-to-day practice.Results: The result of the survey "surfaced the unaddressed concerns of the medical profession, " which were adding to their plight.The survey revealed seven issues that are the root cause of most of the suffering of the medical profession and need to be addressed at the earliest. Conclusion and recommendation:As the performance of any professional gets compromised in a stressful working environment, it is the responsibility of society, policymakers, and law persons/judiciary to provide medical professionals a fearless working environment.Discrimination against a pious profession like medicine is not good for the nation and will culminate ultimately in society in a disastrous manner.