Doctors seek inclusion of ‘Medical Law and Ethics’ as structured subject in medical curriculum
New Delhi: Two senior doctors have written to the National Medical Commission (NMC) urging the inclusion of “Medical Law and Ethics” as a separate subject in both undergraduate and postgraduate medical education. They argued that the fast-changing healthcare environment and the rising number of medico-legal cases in India demand a structured approach to teaching law and ethics in medical training.
In their joint representation, Dr. B. Sadananda Naik, Senior Physician at Alva’s Health Centre, Moodabidri, and Dr. Adhish Basu, Senior Consultant Plastic Surgeon at Apollo Multispecialty Hospital, Kolkata, stressed that the current medical curriculum only touches upon scattered elements of ethics, communication, and criminal jurisprudence. However, it does not provide medical students with comprehensive knowledge of legal frameworks directly linked to their profession.
Citing data from the Indian Medical Association, the doctors noted that more than 70 percent of medical graduates feel unprepared to deal with the legal side of medical practice. They pointed out that rising litigations and compensation cases in consumer courts have left many practitioners resorting to “defensive medicine,” often increasing healthcare costs and weakening trust between doctors and patients. A structured subject, they said, would enable doctors to clearly understand their duties, rights, and patient-consent requirements.
The proposal also drew attention to global practices. Countries like the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia already include medical law and ethics modules in their curricula. The World Medical Association’s Charter on Medical Professionalism, adopted in 2002, also underlines the importance of doctors being well-versed in the legal frameworks guiding medical practice.
Referring to important court rulings such as Jacob Mathew vs State of Punjab (2005) and Dr. Suresh Gupta vs Government of NCT of Delhi (2004), the letter highlighted that the Indian judiciary has repeatedly stressed the need for doctors to be legally aware and competent. The doctors said that teaching medical law would also be in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which promotes multidisciplinary and holistic learning.
According to them, the present system falls short in several areas. While medical ethics is briefly taught in the Foundation Course, legal concepts such as informed consent in India, principles of medical negligence, confidentiality, consumer protection laws, and medico-legal documentation are either missing or taught superficially. Studies, including one published in the Journal of Indian Medical Ethics in 2022, show that over 80 percent of MBBS students are unaware of their medico-legal responsibilities during emergencies.
They further pointed out that the NMC’s Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) framework already stresses producing graduates who are not only skilled clinicians but also effective communicators and leaders. Adding medical law as a structured subject, they said, would directly support these goals by improving legal competence and professional accountability.
The doctors believe the inclusion of the subject will lead to several outcomes such as improved medico-legal literacy, better documentation, reduced litigation, enhanced patient safety, and stronger public trust in the healthcare system. It would also prepare doctors to handle legal proceedings and expert documentation with greater confidence.
Dr. Naik and Dr. Basu have urged the NMC to set up an expert committee to study the proposal, design a curriculum that reflects India’s medico-legal realities, and involve legal experts and judicial authorities in shaping the subject. Copies of their proposal have also been sent to the Union Health Minister, the NMC Secretary, and the Under Secretary of Health and Family Welfare.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
