Death in hospital brings in money for “negotiators”

This is a disturbing trend in DK & Udupi districts. Birth of a new profession: Patient death- hospital bill negotiator!

When a critically ill patient dies after best possible treatment by the hospital, a team of self proclaimed "social activists" are alerted by some hospital employees/ patients relatives (obviously for a tip). 

Then mediamen are "invited" to the hospital. In the media presence "negotiators" make a grand entry, take up the charge of "reducing" the hospital charges for a fee from the patients relatives.

Hospital administrators are then threatened to waive the bill (again the negotiators make money here!)...if hospital authorities remain firm with their decision, they face vandalism at the hospital,  negative publicity over media! The booty is shared by the “informants”, “mediamen” and “negotiators”…

This trend would result in hospitals insisting on deposit money upon arrival of the patient...precious lives may be lost in the waiting period. If such incidents continue, some of the hospitals may refuse to admit the patient in serious cases fearing chaos.

Please do not make the healthcare personnel insensitive by repeated publication of such news, which indirectly is an advertisement for "negotiators".

Self Restraint by the Media: a welcome development

Finally...much awaited self restraint by the media houses comes into force...how the news channels and media houses respond to it, adhere to the guidelines? Wait & Watch!

For Aishwarya Rai's baby, 

TV channels will 'behave'

An astonishing (as per TOI report) 

guideline agreed upon by all news channels 

could forever change the way 

Indian television treats its celebrities

The self imposed guidelines are:

» No pre-coverage of the event.
» Story of the birth of the baby to run only after, and on the basis of, official announcement.
» Story not to run on breaking news band.
» No camera or OB vans at hospital or any other location (like the Bachchans' homes Pratiksha or Jalsa) related to the story. 
» Channels will only go for photo-op or press conference if invited.
» Channels will not carry any MMS or photo of the child. We can carry if issued by the family
» No astrology show to be done on this issue.
» No 11.11.11 astro shows to be done.
» The duration of story to be around a minute/ninety seconds.
» Obviously, unauthorized entry into hospital not permitted. 

Indeed it is a welcome change from "paparazzi" culture of present day media, where privacy of individuals and patients rights are violated routinely!

As a pioneer in advocating patients rights to privacy, this blog appreciates the gesture by the media houses. Hope this heralds the new era of "responsible" media of the future...

Terrorists get live coverage, Thanks to the Media

This ghastly photo taken at a Trauma Center was published in The Hindu. The media has no regard for any privacy/ ethics. Where was the need to publish such gory image? What about the invasion of privacy? Loss of dignity?
A day may not be far when terror groups in the guise of Mediamen, enter hospitals, cause secondary bomb blasts in the hospitals! (To Read more click here)
Don't Talk to Blast Victims, Pune Police Chief to Media

IANS
Pune, Feb 14: The media should keep away from hospitals in Pune where victims of the eatery blast are recuperating, the city police chief warned Sunday. "This is not just a request, it is our official direction," he said.
Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh said at a press conference here that the media should not interview any blast victim, including those at hospitals.
"I want to appeal and request media persons not to go to hospitals where the injured are admitted or talk to them about the incident. This is against national interest.
"It is not just a request, it is also our official direction. Hospitals have also been directed to not allow anyone in the hospitals. Anyone violating this would have to face the consequences," Singh told reporters.
Nine people, including two foreign nationals were killed, while 60 people (48 Indians and 12 foreign nationals) were injured in the blast at the German Bakery Saturday evening.
While 19 of the injured have been discharged from hospitals, 41 are still undergoing treatment, Singh said.


But, as usual mediamen have already barged into the hospital, photographing, videographing hapless victims of terror bomb blast...so the terrorists get a live coverage of victims of their terror attack...thanks to the "terror friendly media" ! 
It is also a known phenomenon that Mediamen gate crash/ enter important venues without any pass/ identity card. Hence it becomes important to keep in mind the possibility of terrorist posing as a Journalist...especially when they are with electronic gadegets like cameras- which can easily conceal weapons/ explosives!

Privacy at Stake at Bangalore resorts?

A waiter at Golden Palms Spa & Hotel tries to sell photos of a private meeting to the media houses! Scary but true!

How private are your moments spent at the resorts/ SPA?

Today it is just a few photos of a private meeting, tomorrow it could be the video recording of your private moments spent at the resort & SPA?

When contacted, the management of the resort is callous about this serious breach of privacy...or are they hand in glove with their employees? Or is it an official policy to record guests activities??

If you are concerned, please mail your response by clicking here

Patients beware: Photographers can Misuse your photo!

Innocent mother child suffer, while the photographer and ad agency laugh their way to the Bank!

AIDS ad face sues for crore

Photograph of a mother and child from a video grab of a Pulse Polio program, sold to a photobanking agency...The agency sells the photo to an Ad agency, which uses the photo in a AIDS campaign!

Chennai, Aug. 4: A woman has sought damages of Rs 1 crore from the Tamil Nadu States AIDS Control Society which used her picture with her daughter in an AIDS poster allegedly without her permission.
The life of Kripa, 25, and her four-year-old daughter Akila (both names changed) turned topsy-turvy once the advertisement appeared in the form of posters, banners and hoardings with the slogan “Nambikkai Mayiathirkku Nandri” (Thanks to the AIDS counselling centres) around three months ago. They were meant to urge people to step into the state-run centres to test for HIV/AIDS.
The housewife has sought the Rs 1 crore for the mental agony caused to her family.
“I was shocked when neighbours told me that our photograph has been displayed in the government hospital near my house in Triplicane (an area in central Chennai). Within a few hours, a relative came to say that she had seen the poster at Egmore. Everyone suspected we had AIDS since our photo was used for an AIDS campaign,” Kripa claimed in her petition filed in Madras High Court seeking damages and a public apology from the society.
The court has issued a notice to the society and the matter will come up for hearing tomorrow.
Tamil Nadu health secretary V.K. Subbaraj said the ad agency which had been given the job for the campaign may be at fault, but added that he had ordered an inquiry into whether the woman’s consent was taken for using her and her child’s images. “Beyond that I can’t comment as the matter is before the court,” Subbaraj said.
Kripa said even her husband suspected she had gone to the counselling centre along with her child for taking the HIV/AIDS test. “It took a lot of pleading and convincing for her to make her husband overcome his suspicion,” said Kripa’s lawyer, G. Mohanakrishnan.
In her petition, Kripa said her neighbours started shunning her and kept their children away from her daughter. “I could not even admit my daughter in a school,” she said.
Her family, Kripa claimed, became social outcasts. She wanted the AIDS agency to remove the images from its campaign immediately, since they had taken them without her permission.
Mohanakrishnan said Kripa was first clueless as to when and where the photograph had been taken. “On repeated queries, she recalled that a foreign agency had taken a video of patients waiting in line at the Government Hospital for Women and Children at Triplicane. Our guess is the photo was taken from a frozen frame of that video,” he told The Telegraph.

HC orders removal of photo

Solution:

1. Ask any photographer to take your permission prior to photography

2. Ensure that your photograph would not be misused for financial gains

3. Protest if someone photographs/ videographs you without permission

Patients rights violation by State Human Rights Commission

Human Rights Organizations unaware of Patients charter of Rights?
What is the need for Publicizing a health check camp? Why reveal patient identity?

Medical Tourism: Bangalore on a losing ground?

Media in Karnataka, violating patients rights...Patients images sold for publication in the media by "stringers"

Lack of privacy, Media/ paparazzi fear driving celebrities/politicians away from Bangalore hospitals!
(news courtesy: Times of India)