Issuing Medical Certificate

As an ENT Surgeon,I issue post operative off work certificate to patients.However in the outpatients,we should be careful in issuing certificates.
On personal ground,I disagree taking off work for small cough colds.Most of the people who ask such certificate are people who are bored of their work and have already taken off before consulting me.When they visit the clinic,they will argue that they were not well previous day and now they have paid my consultation fees.Well! consultation was done for your medical ailments and if it was told by patient that they are visiting me for a certificate-I would have refused to see them in the first place.

Another group who come for certificates are parents of school going kids.The family would have gone on holidays or to attend family functions and then appear to the doctors for a certificate.I blindly refuse to give such certificates.

I was once called for an enquiry where I had written date of resuming as 2/2/13 and the patient made it 12/12/13.This is true and I was so very overwhelmed that after that I never gave certificates for about 2 years .For operated ones,I used to ask ward secretary to type.Handwritten can easily be played around!Also in below article it has mentioned that take the signature of patient and an unrelated witness on the certificate which we occasionally follow in practice.

Here I share a well written article on docplus by DR Professor Prabhakar.Also the comments following it are informative
https://www.docplexus.in/#/app/posts/8fcb924f-a49b-494f-8c40-ff5874088220?utm_term=Email-Digest-0-eve&utm_campaign=Email-Digest&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Docplexus.in&utm_content=CTA

Criteria For Issuance Of Medical Certificate

What kind of legal precautions can we take against violent incidents of non-issue of medical certificates? Patients seek medical certificates (MC) even for cold and cough these days to remain absent from work since they are bored with the same routine and mechanical working conditions. The purpose of seeking medical certificate documentation by any kind of patients is most important whether for the government or private sector. If for government purpose, patient is informed that certificate issued by a private physician will be invalid in such a condition so that the patient should at once convince of regarding this legal statement. Even then patient forces and insists for MC, certificates may be issued mentioning and confirming that the genuine purpose of MC whether it is true to patients knowledge free of cost. God alone knows how these so called certificates are accepted in working places whether government or private industries that are issued by government or private doctors and vice-versa. It is very well known that authorization should be mandatory to issue such medical certificates; however there is paucity of this issue in government protocols because MC issued by the private doctor is also valid in some companies. In such conditions it is always worth to ask the patient convincingly what is the purpose of MC and what he/she is going to do with that and whether MC granted by private doctor is valid or not valid in her/his company etc. These are the preliminary questions that may help to gain the confidence of any patient more so with poor and pity psychiatric patients. Once the purpose is revealed we will have to ask is it true and what for- very soothingly. Why all this in-patients will come deciding everything about MC issuing problems and even ready for fight and assault if the same is not issued, so much fixed in their minds, and prejudiced and preplanned, that’s how our mind works for the future consequences management, of course. Nicely we will have to solace the patients regarding invalidity and unacceptability of these so called MC stories issued by private firms. Repeatedly confirm whether patient is asking for medical treatment certificate or medical consultation fees certification if so we will have to issue both. When so called law protectors exhibit such irrelevance and carelessness towards such type of incidents, then God alone is the ultimate protector and destroyer of this material world. In the first instance police stayed away from this incidence because they thought they are dealing with a psychiatric patient and why to give trouble this is mercy and kindness always shown towards any patient suffering from disease of mind. Therefore prophylactic cautions that work are important than so-called these legal precautions. These are very few precautions not amounting to cautions only, when private doctor issuing MC to adamant patients who insist upon and force doctors to grant MC. Only we can take these simple cordial precautionary steps to prevent further legal mishaps-so enough of this violation. 

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