CUTTACK: Orissa high court has asked the chief secretary to issue a direction instructing doctors across the state to write postmortem reports and prescription in capital letters or in legible handwriting.
The HC issued the direction on January 4 after coming across a postmortem report, which was not legible and the doctor had to be summoned to explain it.The report was in a snakebite death case. The victim’s father had filed a petition seeking the court’s intervention after his plea for compensation was rejected by the tehsildar.
While issuing the direction, the single judge bench of Justice S K Panigrahi said, “In many cases, the casual approach of most of the doctors while writing the postmortem report is affecting the comprehension of medico-legal documents. The judicial system finds it very difficult to read those letters and come to a definite conclusion. In such view of the matter, the chief secretary of the state is instructed to issue a circular to all the medical centres, private clinics and medical colleges and hospitals, directing them to write in proper handwriting or in a typed form when they are prescribing medicine or writing some medico-legal reports.”
After the doctor appeared in court , HC disposed of the petition with a direction to the petitioner to file a fresh representation before the tehsildar within one month. The judge asked the authorities to consider and dispose of the representation in accordance with law.
The HC issued the direction on January 4 after coming across a postmortem report, which was not legible and the doctor had to be summoned to explain it.The report was in a snakebite death case. The victim’s father had filed a petition seeking the court’s intervention after his plea for compensation was rejected by the tehsildar.
While issuing the direction, the single judge bench of Justice S K Panigrahi said, “In many cases, the casual approach of most of the doctors while writing the postmortem report is affecting the comprehension of medico-legal documents. The judicial system finds it very difficult to read those letters and come to a definite conclusion. In such view of the matter, the chief secretary of the state is instructed to issue a circular to all the medical centres, private clinics and medical colleges and hospitals, directing them to write in proper handwriting or in a typed form when they are prescribing medicine or writing some medico-legal reports.”
After the doctor appeared in court , HC disposed of the petition with a direction to the petitioner to file a fresh representation before the tehsildar within one month. The judge asked the authorities to consider and dispose of the representation in accordance with law.