Politics of Evidence and Right to Health Care in India: The Challenges in Fixing Accountability of Medical Doctors in Patient Rights Violations in the Private Health Care Sector in India.

Abstract

Privatization oriented government health care policies have stimulated robust growth of private health care sector in India, without putting in place regulatory architecture that safeguards patients’ rights. The lack of adequate regulatory framework to govern them has put patients to undue disadvantage. This paper, based on primary investigation, analyses the ‘politics of evidence’ that patients are confronted with and are forced to navigate, in redressing ethical and patient rights violations against private medical establishments. The analysis of cases indicates that in the current medico-legal ecosystem is non-conducive to patients and impedes obtaining legally admissible evidence against medical professionals. The prevailing redressal avenues are significantly hostile to patients and unduly favour the private medical establishments who enjoy support and impunity from prosecution under the implicit state patronage. The paper makes a compelling case for a comprehensive regulatory architecture that simultaneously regulates the private medical establishments and safeguards the rights of patients.