A much better system
The Editor:
For far too long we hear about calamities happening in our nation’s hospitals with a subsequent burst of outcry from the citizens. This outcry lasts only for a few days and then it all becomes a faint memory. One significant way to fix this problem is to establish a Medical Complaints Council, similar to the one in England, where patients and their families can have their concerns addressed.
With this in place, doctors would have to register with them to practice medicine. This council is generally an independent regulator for doctors is responsible for protecting, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public by making sure those doctors follow proper standards of medical practice.
They possess strong and effective legal powers designed to maintain the standards that the public have a right to expect from doctors.
When any doctor fails to meet the standards, they, therefore, act to protect patients from harm. In a lot of cases, if necessary, the doctor is removed from their register and hence their right to practice medicine is removed. With this in place, the rights of patients are protected.
Legal council would not be able to competently deal with a medical issue when they did not have the knowledge of the fact hence this system should be implemented in T&T.
Derrick Johnson
via email