Pavitra Mohan, Dvr Seshadri, Evita Fernandez, G Chandra Sekhar, Jagdish Rattanani, Prashant Garg, Prakash Satyavageeswaran, Sharad D Iyengar, R D Thulasiraj
{"title":"Statement of Concern regarding Corruption in Medical Education.","authors":"Pavitra Mohan, Dvr Seshadri, Evita Fernandez, G Chandra Sekhar, Jagdish Rattanani, Prashant Garg, Prakash Satyavageeswaran, Sharad D Iyengar, R D Thulasiraj","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.076","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.076","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We at Equitable Healthcare Access Consortium (EHAC), a consortium of healthcare organisations and individual practitioners committed to ethical and equitable healthcare in India, wish to express deep concern over the recent First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) [1] and subsequent report that appeared in The Lancet [2]. The FIR implicates officials from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, external assessors of the National Medical Commission (NMC), doctors affiliated with private medical colleges, and various intermediaries and administrators.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"343-344"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"To act or not to act in an in-flight emergency.","authors":"Fariha Sabeen","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.049","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.049","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>New medical graduates and pre-clinical doctors face a dilemma when confronted with in-flight medical emergencies. Intervening could raise ethical, legal, and practical concerns, while staying quiet may violate the moral obligation to provide care. This reflective essay discusses the challenges, including lack of standard protocols, racism, and sexism experienced by doctors in-flight. It also highlights the importance of reciprocity and proposes solutions like standardising medical kits. In conclusion, pre-clinical doctors can play a crucial role in in-flight emergencies, and should respond confidently to an emergency call. A nuanced discussion is necessary to determine their role.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"330-332"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454499","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Response to Calderon-Margalit et al: the asymmetry of empathy.","authors":"Vidit Panchal","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.075","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.075","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This response to the critique of my reflection engages with concerns raised by professors at the Braun School of Public Health, HUJI. While acknowledging their disappointment, I reaffirm my central argument that Israeli academia, despite individual gestures, collectively failed to create an institutional culture enabling fearless engagement with Gaza's humanitarian catastrophe. Workshops and academic forums inadequately addressed the crisis, depicting selective empathy and technocratic detachment. Universities bear ethical responsibility during atrocities, their silence, intentional or systemic, risks complicity in injustice.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"320-321"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454443","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Global disparities and data transparency in editorial boards of prominent Internal medicine journals including allied super specialities: A wake-up call.","authors":"Jasmeet Singh, Pratyush Kumar, Abhishek Kumar","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.045","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.045","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Global healthcare research suffers from inequalities, favouring high-income countries, which hampers fair healthcare access. Low and lower-middle-income nations face limited participation and editorial bias, posing concerns for research integrity. Potential reasons for this pattern might be the overrepresentation of researchers from the Global North on editorial boards, disparities in the quality of scientific research, lack of support for local research initiatives, and challenges posed by language barriers. The aim of this study was to assess data transparency and representation patterns of low- and lower-middle-income nations on Editorial Boards of prominent Internal Medicine journals.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The top 50 journals in the \"Internal medicine including allied super specialities\" subject category were selected based on SCImago journal ranking, journal impact factor, literature research and journal citation report. We examined the editorial boards of these journals using the World Bank Income Criteria.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Out of 2406 editorial board members of leading journals, only 5(0.21%) were from low-income countries (LICs), while lower-middle-income countries (LMICs) and upper-middle- income countries (UMICs) constituted 64(2.67%) and 176(7.31%), respectively. High-income countries (HICs) dominated editorial boards, with 2161(89.8%) representation.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Editorial boards of top Internal Medicine and allied super-specialty journals lack adequate representation from low and lower-middle-income countries. This deficiency has significant implications, affecting knowledge production, policy development, and the overall progress of science and research on a global scale. Urgent measures are required to establish a fair and inclusive scholarly publishing system that caters to researchers from all regions.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"278-287"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454445","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Damnhien Nguyen, David Chen, Alexa Torres, Jaimme Lee, Chi Pham, Ayala Amir, Tamira Elul
{"title":"Observation of art enhances medical students' cultural and gender awareness, recognition, and clinical empathy.","authors":"Damnhien Nguyen, David Chen, Alexa Torres, Jaimme Lee, Chi Pham, Ayala Amir, Tamira Elul","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.059","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.059","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>As patient populations become more diverse, cultural and gender competency are increasingly important for clinicians to learn and practice. Cultural and gender competency in the doctor-patient interaction may reduce healthcare inequities perpetuated by structural and personal racism and sexism. Here, we assessed whether a medical humanities elective involving observation of fine art for premedical (post-baccalaureate) and first- and second-year preclinical medical students could enhance their cultural and gender awareness.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Over three cohort years of the elective, we assessed students' written responses to artworks for culture and gender references. We also surveyed students when they were in clinical rotations or practice regarding the perceived impact of the elective on their clinical skills.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Medical and premedical students recognise, note, and interpret a variety of details regarding the culture and gender of people depicted in the artworks. Of the 93 student responses to the art pieces that we analysed (three years of the elective; five to six sessions per year; 2-8 students per session), 66% (62) of their responses noted culture and 73% (68) noted gender details. In the retrospective survey, most students agreed or strongly agreed that the art observation elective improved their awareness of their patients' cultures and gender and their empathy towards their patients.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study suggests that electives involving art observation may enhance medical and premedical students' cultural and gender awareness and competency in the doctor-patient relationship. In the long term, increased cultural and gender competency by clinicians could mitigate ongoing healthcare inequities due to structural and personal biases.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"272-278"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454491","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Supreme court judgment on caste-based prescriptions in prison manuals - tip of the iceberg.","authors":"Sylvia Karpagam","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.052","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.052","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Supreme Court of India had, in a public interest litigation based on an article by journalist Sukanya Shantha in The Wire, sharply criticised existing prison manuals for several clauses reinforcing the age-old injustices of caste-based discrimination and segregation. The Court found ample evidence of this discrimination, both in prison manuals and in the administration of Indian prisons, and instructed the authorities to ensure corrections within three months. While the Court's verdict is commendable and much needed, these violations only reflect the discrimination prevalent in the larger society, in spite of the Constitutional guarantee of equality before the law. This commentary argues that such discriminatory practices should not only be banned in prisons but actively prohibited and jointly addressed in society at large by the Courts, the Legislature, the Executive, as well as the media.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"293-296"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454536","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The path of healing: What a cracked bucket can teach young surgeons.","authors":"Prabudh Goel","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.069","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.069","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This narrative explores the journey of young paediatric surgeons through the metaphor of a cracked bucket that inadvertently waters flowers along its path. The story illuminates how perceived imperfections and vulnerabilities in medical practice often create spaces for deeper healing beyond technical excellence. By embracing both surgical precision and human compassion, trainees discover that their limitations can become strengths, fostering holistic care that addresses not just the physical ailment, but the emotional needs of patients and families.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"328-329"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Challenges in obtaining informed consent for health research from dependent older persons in the Indian socio-cultural context.","authors":"Vijayaprasad Gopichandran, Sudharshini Subramaniam, Priyadarshini Chidambaram, Balasubramanian Palanisamy","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.048","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.048","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In this brief commentary, we share our experience of obtaining informed consent from older persons living in the community, dependent on their sons, daughters or in-laws. We present a scenario in which for our community-based cluster randomised controlled trial on diabetes peer support groups for diabetes self-management, we attempted to obtain informed consent from an older person living in a dependent state with her daughter. While the older woman herself was interested in participating in the study initially, later she declined to consent, probably influenced by her daughter and son-in-law with whom she was living. In this article, we reflect on this unique social dynamic in India where many older persons are in a dependent relationship with their primary caregivers; and what this relationship means to autonomy in research participation. We propose that engaging with primary care givers of older persons before approaching them for research participation may be a crucial step in this social context.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 4","pages":"302-304"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454484","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Silicosis: A public health emergency in India.","authors":"Jagdish Patel","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.051","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.051","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Occupational health is a public health emergency, long ignored in India, primarily as it is considered more of a class issue than a public health problem. The economic impact of mortality and morbidity associated with occupational diseases (OD) and accidents at work is nowhere a priority, resulting in the absence of reliable estimates and credible data on ODs. There are no laws for the protection and preservation of health at work for over 90% of workers in the unorganised sector. These should be a priority across economic sectors, along with laws to compensate workers and citizens for environmental contamination. In spite of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 for the workers in the organised sector, and the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923 for both, organised and unorganised sectors, most of the victims have to depend upon doles paid by the State schemes for financial assistance in case of silicosis.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 3","pages":"256-258"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454410","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Junior researchers and the authorship dilemma.","authors":"Umashri Sundararaju, Hamrish Kumar Rajakumar","doi":"10.20529/IJME.2025.039","DOIUrl":"10.20529/IJME.2025.039","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Medical students face authorship issues as they are increasingly involved in research. Senior researchers often claim undue credit, while students lack support and awareness of their rights. The fear of retaliation and power imbalance worsens the issue. Solutions such as ethics training, student representation on research committees, and mandatory formal authorship agreements have been proposed. These can create a more ethical research environment for future medical professionals.</p>","PeriodicalId":517372,"journal":{"name":"Indian journal of medical ethics","volume":"X 3","pages":"244-245"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145454412","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}