I really do not see anything WRONG in what the doctor told you: "He just ripped me apart: What do you think? Who are you? You just walk into my clinic and demand a medical certificate. I have never seen you before."
Why should he be liable to give you a medical certificate when you have not even gone for a consultation (did you actually think it was his duty to present you with a medical certificate) Its small little things like these that we common people indulge in and finally only blame the Government for corruption. What about the amount of corruption that we are involved in, when is that going to change!!!!! Remember charity begins at home.

Cheers

With a hope that you would think twice before doing something like this.. or atleast before writing something like this..!!

How can I forget the doctor who saved my life when I was 16 years old and my heart stopped nearly 44 years ago. If you were unlucky to have a few deaths due to negligence of a doctor, how can I appreciate your stupidity to ask for MC without knowing the doctor? Are you a government servant? In that case, god save the people. Just because you have a blog does not authorise to criticise everyone except yourself. Yes, there are good journalists too, unlike you, in society. I totally agree.

As Shazia has put it rightly, "I CANNOT AGREE MORE WITH YOU". Even my wife was 34 years old when she conceived (of course ours was a late marriage). Though many doctors and relatives said it may be difficult to bear a child, our family obstretician who is dead against CS said that she will see to it that there will be a natural delivery and only if situation goes out of hand there will be CS. Situation never went out of hand and also this same doctor scolded my wife left and right for having aborted the next foetus. It is the same doctor who did normal delivery of my wife's dead baby. Of course with all I am not all that much in favour of doctors. There are very few real doctors, and that you should meet them. Most of my ailments I treat with home remedies or
fasting. As the Sanskrit verse says, "LANGHANAM PARAMOUSHADAM", and it has been working for me. My brother recently passed away due to wrong diagnosis.

Anthony bhai, thand rakh. Dimag mein zahar mat ghol. Did you know who can help you if you get a boil on your a---? Your friendly doc, of course. He slogged six years to get his practice. You spanked them to become a journo. They spent nearly 30-40 lakhs to get a degree. Kuch to credit lega na. Meet a shrink, he will straighten your sickness. Hats off.

Hi, I cannot agree more with you. I thought I was the only one hating doctors. I was pregnant this year with my third child and this was happening after a gap of 10 years. I was showing a female obstetrician, she was very negative about my delivery (only because I am 34 years OLD), and was insisting on a C-section. I was completely fine and there was no report or illness which suggested any complication, yet she didn't agree for a normal delivery. I ditched her at the last moment and travelled almost 1,000 km to go to my mom's place and had my normal delivery there.

There have been other instances, but this was the most recent, and my belief in doctors has just become stronger... belief that they are up to no good.

When you re-locate you go to great pains in sourcing a good grocer, milkman, etc. You must also source a good doctor, lawyer, CA, etc. before you feel the need for them. Ask around, visit and maybe have a chat. They generally don't charge for that. Even if you have to pay a small fee to attend to a niggling problem, it is well worth the money. You may not be lucky the first or second time. But, if you persevere you could succeed. Hold on tight to the one you found right.

Hi Anthony, I regularly visit this blog to check the comments & your responses. I feel the reason for your blog to attract so much of attention/criticism is the title. The only mistake you made is in the 1st three sentences where many readers misunderstood that you asked for a medical certificate without checkup. My sympathies are with you for all the bad experiences you had with the doctors. I myself had some terrible experiences but I will not go to an extent to say that I hate them and I feel that one should not hate the entire fraternity for the mistakes of few individuals.

Hey Anthony! I buy your point, my friend. All who reacted very hard on this blog, either they are Drs or they don't understand that it's a comment of a person who is free to feel anything for anyone. But I am also one of them who hates doctors, so-called second GODS. There is a very famous saying in Hindi: "Khuda bachae teen balaon se, vakeelon se, Hakeemon se, Haseenon ki nigahon se." By the way you expressed yourself and I welcome your points as well as appreciate your attempt to say whatever you feel or THINK. Let the people say what they think because it's their turn. Good work.

:)

DNA blog is only for staffers and DNA has this sick man on staff? Cannot believe that the DNA standards are so low that a staffer writes some crap and gets away with this. Let any editor of DNA see this and approve openly about the journalistic ethics of this man!

See the way he reacts to each posting that is against him. He asks people to grow up, but he is like a child who hates the doc because the needle hurts him. Can he not grow up? I bet he is too small to be talked about. We see so many people spitting on the roads and he is just like them.

Guys, let's ignore this man! I am not reading his blogs anymore. Let's avoid him. That is the only thing we can do to him.

Thanks. You show how sick you are with your comments. I need not say anything more. Nice email id you have too: antithorny@waasteoftime.com. Shows who needs to go to the psychiatrist ;)

There are some things not clear in your blog. You said you went to the doc and asked for a medical certificate at which he got angry. So did you mean to ask the doc for a 'false' medical certificate by paying him or did you go to him for a checkup and report? Ask yourself why you went to him in the first place.

If you went for a checkup, obviously the doc did not understand your question since you directly asked for a medical certificate. He probably gets lot of people asking for 'false' certificates and assumed that you are another of them. If you genuinely went to the doc for a checkup, you could have told him - "I am not here for a certificate without a checkup. Do a checkup and give me a report."

The other doc that sent your report to the bank was doing his job as per his agreement with the bank. You should be given a copy immediately if you paid for the checkup (directly or to the insurance company). However, the insurance company should share a copy of the report after it gets it from the doctor to keep transparency. This is just the equivalent of getting transcripts from your college when you apply to a university. I think the laws around this are non-existent (whether the bank will follow the law is another question).

Reading your responses, I find them very sarcastic and unnecessarily rude even to people who have responded nicely. If you want to blog at the site which allows comments, please be ready to receive them as well.

The misdiagnosis by a doctor in the past was definitely wrong. Though docs are human too, a wrong medicine that leads to a death should have resulted in an FIR. I can understand the bias you have against docs due to this tragedy.

So if you hate docs that's fine... it's your wish. But I can be sure that the doc who refused you the medical certificate was a good one.

That's precisely what I told him, Sumit. I never said I wanted a certificate without a checkup. I also told him my wife and children visit him quite often... I am sarcastic with people who hide behind fake identities and try to pontificate. People who write their names as 'Dr' and email id as info@hdfc.com and then tell me to visit a psychiatrist. It's them who need to visit psychiatrists. I have a right to hate and love what I want. I never told them what to love or hate. Nowhere have I said ALL doctors are bad. I have mentioned doctors who were good. It's only the guilty doctors who are getting upset. The cap fits them ;)

Anthony, I analysed why you wrote this. You posted 40 blogs. Except 3, all others have neither attracted any or less than 6 comments. This one (which is not in good taste) attracted 21 posts.

The next highest post is why you wanted to marry Rakhi Sawant. I wish you really married her. At least you would get popular talking crap like her.

So you realised that unless you talk some nonsense, no one notices you. I doubt if you are really a journalist. I bet you are a freelancer!

Anyway, you achieved your goal... getting noticed at any cost.

All the best and keep shitting around — till it hits you.

Thanks Joseph. Superb analysis! When I speak about something I hate it is not in good taste? Oh, come on, grow up, and stop talking crap yourself!

Way Anthony! Tu pagla gaya hai, kaisee baaten karta hai, re bawle apna deemag ghar rakh kar aaya tha kya?

AnthonysAnotherFreind, you also sending me to pyschiatrist? :(

Anthony D Costa has gone mad, he needs some serious treatment, guys, please treat him.

Thanks Santoshkumar Singh

I suggest that even commenting on this blog is useless. The blogger reminds me of modern day journalists who seem to write anything just because of the sensationalism it creates rather than verify whether the facts are right. As many of you have commented and as the blogger himself shows, he is basing his opinions without verification. I strongly believe that in the case of the medical certificate, he might have just demanded it without explaining the circumstances. This might have led the doctor to believe that he might be demanding a false certificate. How many people actually pressurise doctors to give false certificates? Let me assure you that students do so to get extra attendance at schools without actually attending, youth does it to get handicap certificates to get reservation jobs, adults do it in order to escape high premiums for health insurance & life insurance (everyone knows that habits such as alcohol & smoking do attract higher premiums since that patient himself is destroying his health). Also, the blogger apparently thinks he knows everything and hence, everyone should do as he says. This type of personality makes for very difficult patients to deal with. As many comments have suggested that he seek psychiatric advice, let me assure the blogger that the advice is right although I really doubt it is going to be of any help. Such patients only end up destroying the trust between doctors & patients in emergencies & critical situations. In the end, the doctor need not have touched the patient to kill him, the patient himself would have done the job. But still, modern day journalists tend to pin the blame on the doctors. What can the doctor do if the patients & patients' families with mentalities such as this writer are more interested in arguing without any knowledge of medicine or law or ethics? There are a lot of uneducated & poor people who still have trust in their doctors and do go to them. Many of them do not even have access to them. Doctors would be happy treating them instead of wasting time with people such as this blogger. Mr. Anthony, you have every right to hate. Then, please do not go to those whom you hate for treatment. There are other options available for you. If someone asks you to get a medical certificate, it is because they believe in the doctor to give the right certificate and probably, they may even be believing that you are lying. Also, if you have been treated for an illness by another doctor, then the same doctor has to give you the certificate.

Points taken, Mahesh. Any good pyschiatrist you recommend? Anyone you have visited before?

Hey Anthony, I have always liked reading your posts. I myself blog, can you let me know how do I get a chance to post my articles here? Sorry for the trouble.

Cheers!
Abid
galli-number-3@blogspot.com

Sorry, DNA Blogs is only for staffers :(

It is unfair. If you start hating like that, you will not find anyone whom you cannot hate.

Did you hate the teacher for giving marks directly to the headmaster, who declared the result, without showing your answer sheet and marks to you?

Did you hate your manager, who filled your Confidentiality Report of your performance, without showing you?

Do you hate your child if he/she gets the progress report card signed by your wife, instead of you?

Do you hate your wife if she sends some money to her parents?

Do you hate all pilots as thousands have died due to mistakes of pilots?

Do you hate all Automobile Engineers just because many die in vehicle accidents every day?

Do you hate all Engineers as whatever is built by engineers may have failed some time or other?

All Doctors are not bad. There are many good ones. Your action seems to be a knee-jerk reaction for the increased premium. The Insurance company rules may demand that the doc gives the report directly to them. We cannot blame the doctor for giving reports to the company directly, without telling you. He/she has done the duty of reporting about you as they found in their investigations. What would you do, if they told you? Change the doctor and ask him to give a report (like you attempted)?

If you doubted that the reports are faulty, you could have cancelled the offer and even demanded an explanation. Or maybe go to another Insurance company. Why blame a doctor for that?

Also, I bet you have to go to Doctors some time, whether you like it or not. Will you sit at home and avoid doctors, as you hate them? Would you not take your child to a doc when the child is suffering? Are you not happy when a doctor treats your child and the child is happy soon?

Docs are not gods and they may not be able to correctly diagnose sometimes, as the human body is very complex. It is unfortunate. But, no one does it intentionally. There may be some unethical people and they are there in every field.

Take it easy, dear Anthony. You can hate them, but you need not spread the hatred. If you are expecting many supporting you, and if many do, I feel sad. By this we are not achieving anything.

I am sorry, if I am a bit too straightforward.

Let's share happiness and not hatred.

Wish you all the best.

Thanks Ramesh, but nowhere have I said I hate all doctors. I have written about good doctors too. And are there not things in life that you hate? One thing, at least? :)

I have a different story to tell. Have practised for quite some time and quit because all patients wanted modern treatment and medicines. My approach has always been to avoid medicines, which the patients did not like. The world has changed — hard to say whether for the good or bad!

:)

Don't belittle doctors. Doctors are most hardworking. They toil day and night attending to emergencies, doing the most stressful work you can imagine. Every doctor tries his best to help the sick and needy. Your harsh, ill-founded hatred for doctors arises out of jealousy. You could not become a doctor. I'm sorry, but there is no medicine for jealousy.

How can you expect a doctor who hasn't treated or examined you to give a medical certificate? Refer to the medical council rules, please. I advise you to study hard for the medical entrance exam. Then pass the most difficult exam in the world you can imagine. Then five years of continuous studies. Do you have any idea about the number of subjects, the number of books, the number of patients, practicals, exams, sleepless days and nights a doctor spends in his learning days as well as in his practice, sacrificing his family life, unable to spend time with his parents, wife, children and near ones? All to give his best time for the poor patient.

Your comments make me sick as I am a doctor, too. So may you become a doctor and know these things by experiencing them yourself. Only then waste space on such blogs.

I'm sorry, my friend. Let me ask you. If, god forbid, you met with a road accident, what would you expect? Would you still hate the doctor who is trying his best to save your life?

I pity you. Apologise. Repent for your mistake. Understand that a doctor is your friend in need. May you understand this fact as soon as possible. Doctors are not gods. They are mere mortals, like you and me. With the expertise they have, they treat you. So do not judge, not to be judged. Thanks be to wonderful doctors. God bless them.

I am extremely sorry Dr Shamin. I became a journalist without any hard work. I enjoyed my life. I bunked classes. I did not study. Ha! Only doctors work hard. And, excuse me, I have never aspired to become a doctor. Never. And, God forbid, if I met with a road accident, I am sure you will be there to help me ;)

Thank god, you didn't generalise. A doctor is expected to give a confidential report to the insurers, he was only doing his duty. I agree the doctor-patient relationship has deteriorated in the recent past but it appears to be a part of a general malaise affecting our society.

:)

Sorry, i didn't accept you.

:( How sad

That makes 2 of us. I hate them along with dentists. In my childhood I had Dr Kapadia in Goregaon. Even in this time & age there is Dr Deshpande, basically a cardio but does GP. Kapadia is long gone, bless his soul. No tests, nothing, medicines always worked! Poor were treated free. Dr Deshpande is the same. No fancy tests and most of the time NO medicines either. Take steam with menthol and reduce weight, is the refrain. My thyroid problem could not be diagnosed by a battery of highly specialised doctors, but Deshpande did it in no time!

True, Hemant

Anthony, I have to agree with you. Doctors nowadays are not like the doctors of old. Now they are more business minded. Our home remedies are the best. All doctors are not bad. There are some who care for their patients. There are always a few bad apples in a basket, so trust in God.

Very true, Gina

I completely empathise with your feelings. These days if you visit a doctor, you can be sure you will continue visiting him or her for the next 2 years at a minimum. Plus they are so sold out to pharma companies that they prescribe any kind of medicine without bothering to even warn us about side effects. We have to be extremely careful about going to a proper doc even for small, simple issues. The standards have fallen really low in the last few years. I can recount enough and more examples of my own and of my friends who have faced problems because of the carelessness of docs treating them. Finally I realised the common factor with all these docs was that they all work for big hospitals with horrible processes and no value on time.

I have now realised that if you need to visit good docs with values, go to some decent mid-range hospitals even if it's government hospitals and get some decent professional care rather than someone trying to dump all available junk medicines in your throat.

Yes!!!

Mr. Anthony D'Costa, yes, you are absolutely right. Your conclusion about doctors is fully correct. I also do not go to any doctor because doctors are mostly not knowledgeable, very arrogant, and money spinners. My feeling is that more harm will be done if one goes to a doctor than if s/he does not go to a doctor. Doctors have lost all ethical and moral value and they are only money spinners today. Doctors of the quality and integrity of earlier time are no more available and nobody should expect it also. Cheers for your bold expression of truth.

Thanks :)

As per your way of thinking, politicians, lawyers, businessmen etc, each of these categories is to be hated because there are plenty of bad elements in each of these groups? In the end you would start hating your own race!

Hahahahahahah, Dr Basu. I don't hate YOU because you are bloody frank!!! And, no, I love politicians. They are so concerned about the common man

Hate is a very strong term to use for a person who would save thousands of lives and suggest you a healthy life...!

Hmmmmmmm...

SORRY, DOCTOR CANNOT PROVIDE CERTIFICATE UNLESS HE HAS TREATED YOU!

Did I stop him from checking me? How can he just refuse?

i think you are a type of person who just doesn't want to change with time. in today's era when medico-legal cases are filed in thousands everyday, how can you expect a doctor to give a medical certificate without being seen by him? good you don't go to the doctor. you will be a problematic patient otherwise also.

Who said I don't want to change with time? And, why hide behind a fake email id? Is that keeping up with the times? Did I stop him from checking me?

Just one comment, we feel sick and fall ill (English language is very peculiar, like climb down the stairs?). The designated doctor has to submit the report to the party concerned in case of insurance. However, you could investigate the reason for the increase in premium, and also obtain a second opinion from a reputed doctor, then go after the insurance company/bank if the new report says otherwise. Usually smokers have a higher premium. Gone are the good old days of Mazgaon, right?

OK, thanks for the info. And, no, I am not a smoker!

Mr Antony, I still didn't understand the reason for hating doctors. In all the instances you mentioned, whether it was for a medical certificate or the report to the insurance company, I am sure the doctor concerned is definitely not at fault. They were only doing their job efficiently. Now if you want a medical certificate for an illness you don't have or to cover up an illness you have, then it is not only illegal but ethically incorrect. I am proud of the doctors who didn't entertain you. If you hate doctors for such frivolous reasons, then I guess you need help. Since you don't like doctors you cannot go to a psychiatrist, so please go to a psychologist and get some counselling.

Thanks for your advice, Dhiraj. Are you by any chance a part-time psychologist? If so, I can come to you ;)

So what did you have when you had to get that medical report? Weren't you curious to know?

Yes, even I want to know. But the doctor said he cannot tell me that :(

I hate doctors too — and I am a doctor myself!

Hahahahahahaha!

I can't seem to understand the point of this post. You have had 2 bad experiences with doctors, one of which is because the doctor submitted your health report directly to your insurance company. So you hate the doc because you probably have health issues?

Has it been proved that your sister received the wrong medication?

I wonder if your present attitude will prevail when either you or your family members really require medical attention.

Did I ever say I will refuse medical attention? I just said I hate doctors

Hi Tony (Anthony),

I am not a doctor but come from a family of doctors. Whilst I deplore the doctor's outburst at you, he has a point. They are humans too, but they could end up in an unwarranted situation, including litigation, these days if medical certificates are not legitimate. Not all doctors are straight, but I have had doctors from pre-Independence days in my family and the standards have slipped.

The best approach with a doctor or a lawyer is being honest and explaining politely with full details, background, and mitigating circumstances, if any, as to why you need their professional intervention/help/certification etc. Depending on a case-to-case basis and based on their risk involved, they may then take a step closer to what you may need or even oblige if it is a genuine case.

Surely, the doctor should have handled you better. However, one cannot hate a person because they were irate or did not do something you expected them to do.

Try moderation and gentle persuasion as a tool as opposed to assuming your doctor will do anything because you pay them. This approach works almost all the time.

Thanks, Murali

Your hatred is misplaced. See a psychiatrist. The doctor refusing to show you a medical certificate should have treated you with dignity and if he did not, I advise you to humiliate him in front of other patients or his staff. That is the way these crooks are to be dealt with. Now, as far as I know, there is no law that doctors have to show you their medical certificate. Also many 'doctors' display false certificates in India. So he has no obligation to show a certificate. If you desire to know if he is real, check with the medical council of the state. It may take months or years to find out. Now about your sister's death, tragic yes, but everyone makes mistakes. Every doctor has patients who died on them even though they tried their best. It is a high-risk profession and people forget that because there are so many doctors around nowadays. If you search yourself, you must have made serious mistakes in life too and please pray no one died because of you. You blame the doctor for the death of 1 out of 7 children in family, I did not see you complimenting doctors for keeping the rest of you alive... or for keeping your wife and children alive.

You should be seeing a psychiatrist, Alka. I never said anywhere in the blog post that I asked the doctor for HIS medical certficate

I used to believe, doctors are not gods, they are as human as any of us are. They also err at times. They also have family. But these days things are changing. They are money-minting machines. Everything is linked. One doctor doesn't believe another doctor's reports. Separate tests, diagnostics, different laboratory. Different lab gives different reports. No idea what's happening in society. Things are quite disturbing.

Oh my gosh, how can you say this, Malathi? You may soon get comments telling you to visit a psychologist ;) (PS: I agree with you!!!!)

There are doctors like DR. REGI M GEORGE & DR. LALITHA who are working for the poorest of the poor in a remote place, Sitlingi, Dharmapuri, Salem, Tamil Nadu (my classmates of Medical College, Alleppey, Kerala) by GOD'S GRACE.

Yes, Dr Roy, there were even doctors like Dr Rodrigues. I never said I hated ALL doctors

So let me guess, Mr. D'Costa, if you or your mother had gone to medical school and become a doctor you would have diagnosed & treated every patient correctly and no one under your care would ever have died. Am I correct? Do you expect doctors to be Gods?

As far as the doctor submitting a "bad" report to the bank is concerned, what do you think he should have done? Did you expect him to lie or falsify the report so that you could get a lower insurance premium?

How can you walk into a doctor's clinic and demand a medical certificate without examination? The doctor knows nothing about your medical history since you are not his patient. If I were in his place I wouldn't give you a medical certificate either.

"I recently fell sick, but refused to go to a doctor," you write. Then I guess you won't live very long. Your family might be able to cash in that insurance policy after all.

Mr Desi Guy, I never said I expected doctors to be Gods. I also never demanded a medical certificate. He could have simply made me undergo all the tests and then according to the results given me a certificate or whatever. And thanks to your well wishes, I will live long. Very long.

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