Tuesday, 19 August 2014 02:31
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Sri Lanka’s health sector has taken a battering recently but fresh surveys have sparked alarm over the large number of doctors who are practicing in Sri Lanka without proper qualifications.
Over 10,000 fake doctors in Sri Lanka are practicing Western medicine without a proper license or qualification, the country’s largest doctors’ association has told media. An investigation conducted by a team of doctors of the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) led by Dr. Haritha Aluthgama has identified 10,400 fake doctors who are currently operating in the country without proper qualifications or licenses, swindling the unwary public.
The investigation has found that 26.4% of private dispensary doctors are quacks. In Colombo suburbs alone 35% of the doctors are unqualified to treat public, media reports have indicated, sparking alarm over public health and safety.
The findings come in the wake of the recent death of a female doctor during a cosmetic surgery procedure provided by an unqualified doctor who has operated a plastic surgery clinic in Colombo. He is reported to have had several well-heeled clients including celebrities. While this specific matter is now before the courts, the larger presence of unqualified doctors has raised alarm.
The Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC), the Ayurvedic Medical Council and the Homeopathic Medical Council are the only three medical councils in Sri Lanka that provide certificates of approval to those who have qualified in medicine. Many of the fake doctors take the registration number of registered doctors who are currently residing abroad, the investigation has found.
Reportedly, the quacks include doctors who had been interdicted, medical college dropouts, paramedical officers, retired pharmacists and relatives of doctors. A previous survey done in 2007 by the GMOA had revealed there are over 40,000 quacks practicing medicine in Sri Lanka.
The quack doctors prescribe drugs to patients causing severe damage and sometimes death because they do not have the required knowledge, experience and qualifications, the GMOA says. The health authorities believe these illegal practices by the quacks endanger the lives of the public, especially those who are suffering from spreading diseases such as dengue. These patients need special medications and prompt treatment, they point out, warning the public to seek treatment from qualified doctors.
But figuring out who are qualified doctors is 90% of the problem. Currently Sri Lanka does not have a legal mechanism competent enough to deal with practicing quacks. Moreover, the reluctance of most qualified doctors to practice in rural areas, income disparity that pushes people towards questionable individuals and congestion in the public healthcare sector that leaves people with no option but to seek assistance from private practitioners are all part of this problem.
Other countries such as India that have also long battled the “quack epidemic” have responded by toughening laws and putting better monitoring mechanisms in place. Stakeholders such as the GMOA also need to do their part by asking their members to re-register and promote a more transparent system of evaluating qualifications. Perhaps it’s time for doctors to be independently evaluated, much like other products are by a standards authority. This is in no way a disrespect to a profession that literally makes the difference between life and death.
