Musings Own Thoughts

 It is hard to write about this subject in a detached manner. Medical ethics is based on the premise that doctors who provide healthcare solutions are actually dealing with human life. The premise that this is sacred gift and the person who seeks help to alleviate disease and suffering cannot be unethical in doing wrong to any fellow human being. The fundamental issue here is that historically hospitals came from places of religion and so even to this day many religious trusts consider running hospitals a sacred duty. Social organizations too think that running hospitals and providing treatment free or at a low cost is an act of charity and social welfare. The changes in this started occurring when multiple stakeholders came in the picture and the dynamics of  medical care became more complex.  Many of my blogs in the past have touched on this subject so I will not allude to most of them. I am trying to adopt the framework of the incentives of state or sarkar, markets or bazaar and soc

 A long life innings came to a relatively peaceful end on August 16, 2024 at the age of 98. Sadly, her last few months and years were painful as  dementia had set in. However, my sister her daughter and caregivers looked after her very well and facilitated a dignified end to her mortal life. The following verses from the Gita make me come to terms with the fact that physically she is no more. The real Self of my mother is alive and eternal and will never cease to exist. As I reflect on her long life I have the difficult task of putting in a few words a lifetime of experiences and also try and bring out the essence of her personality.  https://www.bmcm.org/inspiration/passages/what-real-never-ceases/                 What is real never ceases to be. The unreal never is. The sages Who realize the Self know the secret Of what is and what is not. Even as we cast off worn-out garments And put on new ones, so casts off the Self A worn-out body and enters into Another that is new. Let me do th

 Dr. Parvez Hakim is no more and quietly left this world on August 9, 2024. It may be a coincidence but at around 10pm on the same day I was about to write a blog on medical ethics.  I was composing my thoughts on the content and the part that role models play in shaping medical ethics came as a key part of my experience. The name of Dr. Hakim came as one of the most important mentors I had in shaping my medical values and ethics.  Coming to Dr Hakim the person, teacher and the surgeon he can be described as gentlest of gentlemen. A man of few words but mind you he never lacked in expression. I can only say that his few words were extremely effective and conveyed perfectly what needed to be spoken. He was witty and had a ready repartee at all times. As a teacher we needed to learn from him and he taught by example. He was a textbook surgeon and was always unhurried and perfect, he would achieve perfect hemostasis (control of bleeding) after every step. We residents used to joke that Dr

  Knowledge is a noun and knowing is a verb. The act of acquiring knowledge through study, association, experience and practice is called knowing. The next question is Knowing what? The answer is knowing a subject which one chooses.The subjects chosen relate to the secular field and the spiritual field. Pursuing knowledge which is secular relates to utilitarian knowledge which is conventionally acquired through education which in general term trains individuals to follow the mundane purpose of life.  In the Universe at least as humans we believe that we are at the top of creation as we are blessed with an evolved apparatus of body, mind and with our intelligence we are able to conquer nature and live a comfortable life. We also have the power to discriminate between right and wrong through the intellect which can if exercised raise man to sublime heights. While this is an extremely comfortable thought, I feel that we can only perceive what our consciousness allows us to perceive and it