July 15, p. 2: The law may have armed patients with more rights when receiving medical treatment. However, some doctors are still not ready to respond when patients demand those rights, an activist said Wednesday. “The problem is the relationship between doctors and the community is still predominantly paternalistic, when what is actually needed is partnership,” Sudaryatmo from the Indonesian Consumer’s Foundation (YLKI) told The Jakarta Post. The 2004 Medical Practice Law stipulates that a patient has several rights when they receive treatment, including the right to ask for a second opinion and be informed regarding medical procedures performed on them. Sudaryatmo said some doctors still think they are above the patients they treat. Over the last few years, cases involving conflict between patients and medical practitioners have risen across the country. One of the most widely publicized was that of Prita Mulyasari versus the Omni International Hospital in Tangerang.
Your comments:
The only answer is socialized healthcare, paid through progressive taxes. To everyone according to their needs and from everyone according to their ability. The combination of profit and healthcare is a very bad one for the people.
Andrew
Tangerang
My wife nearly died giving birth to my first child in a hospital in West Jakarta because the doctor on duty was having a shower at home. In Indonesia, there is no system of accountability or responsibility... That is why I made sure that she only gives birth or gets medical treatment in New Zealand or Singapore... Sudah cukup pengalaman seumur hidup (Enough for my whole life).
Mukesh Raj Dass
Wellington, New Zealand
Implementing patient rights, conducting psych tests, and improving the curriculum are all good efforts to mitigate the problem.
Even in advanced countries such as the US, we hear of the same complaints. Money and time are always major adverse factors working against the patients.
Separately, based on an informal unscientific poll, Indonesian and/or Asian physicians are known to be more caring, and more communicative here in the US, which widely practices the prepaid system.
In a prepaid, capitation and DRG pay system, the incentive is to rush, to cut corners, to do less for a fixed fee or predetermined fee.
The US prepaid system mainly solves the cost issue, rather than patient satisfaction.
Examples cited of Indonesians seeking Singaporean doctors, is an imperfect model of caring and communicative doctors — Indonesian who can afford medical services go to Singapore are cash paying, or enable the cash cows to be milked.
The problem will continue — all parties including the IDI and the YKLI can do is to mitigate and be continuously vigilant and ensure media exposure, and, for medical schools to drill students with the important of compassionate care.
James Waworoendeng
California
The problem is that the relationship between doctors and the community is still predominantly paternalistic, when what is actually needed is a partnership — if only this was said by a doctor.
Deka
Jakarta
It’s all about money.
I know somebody who paid — one month ago — Rp 150 million to the university to be sure her daughter passed all the tests.
Van Beneden
Brussels
Doctors in Indonesia are terrible and money oriented. You had better not live in Indonesia. China or Australia are the best. The Indonesian government is so corrupt!
John
Jakarta
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