Most doctors look down upon advertising as they feel it is below their dignity. The Medical Council of India also bans it, as they feel it makes the doctor-patient relationship a very commercial one. However, the practise of medicine has changed today, and doctors need to compete for patients with corporate hospitals and clinic chains . These are commercial organizations which advertise aggressively in order to attract patients. How are doctors in private practice, who are professionals, meant to compete with these corporates?
It has become an uneven playing field, where the odds are stacked in the corporate hospitals' favor. They are allowed to advertise, whereas individual doctors aren't, which is patently unfair. Until the medical council moves with the times, what are the options available to doctors? One alternative which many clever media-savvy doctors employ is hiring a public…
