And for a Friday as a dear family friend suffered the trauma of ICUs and Ventilator, some thoughts….. some musings…..
Lot is talked about India being a young country and undoubtedly it is. The average age of an Indian is only 29 years, amongst the youngest in the world. But equally we must all be aware that there are more than 138 million Indians over the age of 60, whose potential, happiness, concerns and well being need major attention. These senior citizens, whose life expectancy has gone up substantially, thanks to preventive medical care, good healthy lifestyles and regular medical check ups. Many of today’s retirees and seniors in India, particularly from the middle class, are financially well off and independent. They are really a huge developing and untapped market waiting to be to be explored. Not enough thought / innovation and R&D is being invested on this target group. Newer and specialised old age friendly products, from special smart phones, unique footwear to exclusive subsidised Group entertainment, safe travel, holiday stay etc. etc. Gone are the Joint family days when a Retiree and Spouse are expected to stay with their children. Today, depending on individual choices, people retire as early as 55 and mostly by 62. They then have almost two decades to enjoy life as their travails of settling the children are all mostly over. The umbilical cord with Grand kids and family ties continues ofcourse.
One major threat and lacuna is the growing menace of profiteering by some of the greedy and avaricious in the Indian Medical system. Of particular reference is the concept of putting a terminally ill patient first into the ICU (nobody is allowed in; hardly the family has access to know what’s happening) and then to put on a Ventilator. Each passing day, the bill goes up by Rs 60,000 to one lakh. The greedy mafia can smell the helplessness of the immediate family. It’s a Catch-22 situation. Fortunately, thanks to some active NGOs and humane doctors like Dr. Datar and Dr. Gupta and many other good Souls, the matter has been flagged to the Supreme Court who have legislated passive Euthanasia and now recognised the right to die with dignity as an integral component of the fundamental right to life under article 21 of the Constitution. SC has approved a Living Will as a legal document specifying actions to be taken if and when the person is incapacitated and unable to make decision. It’s very early days. The revised judgement was only in Jan 2023. The first Model Living Will has been written by Dr. Dattar himself, one of the protagonists in support. Lots more needs to be done. My friend Subba Rao is now attempting to join the dots. Support him.
It’s W-I-P (Work in Progress). Any legislation and change is not easy in a large and complex country like India. But the Elephat has moved. Let each one of us understand the issues. Read up and support the movement in an involved way, the medico-legal way, the SEEGOS way.