K. Ritse
Concern Citizen, Pfutsero Town
Nagaland is a small state in India, having 80% plus literacy rate. It is only a matter of half century that the statehood of Nagaland has been recognized in the year 1963. Within a span of 50 years, one can feel the difference of Naga life from half naked to well standard fashionable life at present. Many have acquired basic education and few talented persons got professional degrees from various reputed professional institutions across this vast country India as well as abroad. Among many professional studies, MBBS and higher-up studies in this line is one of the most well recognized studies in Naga society. Still, the requirement of doctors in Naga society is high and demanded from all corners of rural and urban areas. Many young students in the higher secondary level choose MBBS as the top priority of career.
The reasons for choosing this profession may not same to all the present doctors and the aspiring doctors. But there must be some positive plus points in choosing ones career. Some of the probable reasons might be:
1. Parental Influence: The parent’s most driving factor for children to pursue MBBS course is to take care of their physical well being in their old-age life. Instead of going too far and high expensive private hospitals for treatments and consultations, who wouldn’t want their own children to give the same without any expenditure? Therefore, it is not a bad influence because as human beings, we live for each other till we die one day. Honoring and accepting the parent’s health security is same to honor and respect ones parent as mentioned in the Holy Bible as next to Almighty God.
2. Life Saving Profession: Some of the candidates might choose this profession just for their sheer willingness and as a calling to serve for the people. The inner strength to serve humanity and give compassionate service to the needy people is the greatest achievement of human life. Naga society has seen many of such dedicated doctors in the past years; even in the near future, such individual sacrificing their services for the well-being of the whole population are expected. Such great upcoming doctors are the real cherishing goal of Naga society.
3. Lucrative life long career: While other professions such as lawyer, Engineer, Teacher etc are chosen as per individual liking and commitment, doctor’s profession has another extra attraction. This distinctive attraction is that it is one of the most employable jobs in any given time. Be it in government service, private hospital or own individual clinics, the choice is widely open to the doctor degree holders. So, if one is has already acquired a degree, the holder’s option for self employment is higher and the services can be lifelong period.
4. Precautions: While many others attributes can be cited apart from those listed above, some same negative points should also be must kept in mind. Firstly, misused of this profession for personal material gain may invite a lot of health hazards to his/her subjects. In an advanced society, many doctors have landed in trouble because of ill-treatments to the patients. The right conscious patients often lodged case files to in court when wrong treatments are given. While there are no such cases here, educated persons who are aware of their right as well as availability of information in a highly digitized society, may propel many to avail such facilities soon.
In Nagaland, people talk about more about the negative side than the positive aspects. We criticized each other just because we could not reach out to reach the goal of other states doctors. We Nagas tend to comment on ‘Sour Grapes’ side if we cannot plug the bunch of sweet grapes. When compare to the other Doctors in neighboring states, we consider our Doctors to be inferior as we suffer from a ‘Trust Deficit Syndrome.’
Again, it is a bazaar talk that Nagaland Doctors, when approached, usually prescribed all the time Antibiotic medicines to the patients to cure any diseases. Stronger Antibiotic medicine is prescribed again, when the first doesn’t work. Such practices, instead of curing the suffering, may deteriorate the disease. When referred outside, other doctors had given a bad remark about mistreatment to the patient. Such comments of mistreatment in the initial stage of the disease make more complication of the patient and landed them in trouble in the later stage. Our Naga society is not only Antibiotic drug culture society. There are many scientific devices and equipments to substantiate the doctor’s treatments to detect the real disease. What prompted the Doctors to choose this profession is give a better health to all people irrespective of its background. In each and every profession, there are professional ethics and code of conduct that knit the fraternity. If such rules and regulations are not practiced, people will surely disrespect them. Therefore, our Naga doctors must woke-up and appreciate each other to flourish in their own respective profession,
Many may criticized the Doctors for running their own private clinics and neglecting their own duties in the respective hospitals for personal gain. It is also right, because as we are all born selfish in nature, but the career and duties must be the first priority, wherever one may be posted. To accentuate the social recognitions as a respected doctor, we must think first of the society and next is ourselves. While saluting the Naga doctors for their contribution and sacrifices for betterment and paving the way for a healthier society, we also expect the best from them. “We expect you to sacrifice your best as it happened by your senior already retired Naga Doctors in their service periods and made commendable jobs as the first batch of Doctors in Naga society.”
