Plea in Kerala High Court to set up verification portal to crack down on fake doctors

The Kerala High Court on Monday admitted a plea seeking the establishment of a centralized portal on the Kerala State Medical Council's website that would enable citizens to verify the credentials of medical practitioners and combat the rise of fake doctors in the State [General Practitioners Association v. State of Kerala & Ors]..The plea by an association of doctors named the General Practitioners Association (GPA) also calls for regular inspections of medical clinics to act against fake doctors who set up bogus clinics by using the registration details of genuine medical practitioners.Justice VG Arun on Monday sought the State's response in the matter and posted the matter for hearing on November 25, 2024..In its petition, the GPA has raised a host of concerns regarding the rise of fake doctors in Kerala which has led to a rise in incidents of medical negligence, malpractices, and fatalities.It is pointed out that, although the Kerala Medical Practitioners Act, 2021, and the Kerala Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2018, mandate the registration and verification of doctors’ qualifications, fake doctors continue to operate across the State.These fake doctors include medical graduates from foreign universities who do have have proper certification to practice medicine in India, the plea noted. The plea highlights gaps in the present system that enable such fake doctors to continue their activities. In this regard, the plea points out that Kerala does not have a centralized platform to verify doctors’ credentials..The Court has also been informed that the petitioner is running a “GPA Quack Cell" to gather information on suspected fraudulent medical practitioners. Complaints received via a dedicated phone line were verified and forwarded to District Medical Officer (DMO) and concerned Station House Officers (SHOs) for further action. However, despite substantial evidence of such malpractices, the police have hesitated to register FIRs and dismissed many complaints, the GPA said.Representations were also made by the GPA on these issues to the Chief Minister, the State Health Department of Health to no avail. The failure of State authorities to implement an effective mechanism to check the registration of doctors violates the right to health under Article 21 of the Constitution, GPA has contended. .Therefore, the association has now sought the Court's intervention in the matter. The petition has been filed through advocates Akhil Vinayan and Prashanth Tom.