The hospital in the NYT story is one of these PRIVATE hospitals, run by individual doctors. So if they charge money to see the baby, isnt is CAPITALISM??

This hospital is in no way obligated to provide FREE care to anyone. So why is this a bribe?? and not just “cost” of getting “better” treatment

to whoever said this is just another “orientalist” article i must disagree…

i work in public health in UP and am often horrified at the lack of information, or the wrong information that circulates about healthcare. beliefs that governments hospitals cost so much money (which yes, they are free, but patients must pay for all their own supplies plus often bribing attendants for actual attention from doctors), and also are victims of misinformation about common illnesses in their area, as well as the prevalence of HIV/AIDS.

we see this and try to create new health care systems and provide information, accountability, to stop these abuses (in my work we focus on hiv+ patients). so the fact that people would be interviewed for this article? were disgusted by it enough to say something? that is progress, and commendable.

a lot of these corrupt practices won’t stop until the “common” people admit it is happening to them (and can say they have had enough). so highlighting this is not orientalist… it is another step to get people to talk, in publc.

yes, it can serve some good because the journalist going from hospital to hospital, house to house, asking questions about this practice shed light on it, and can often be the beginning of people standing up to it. wouldn’t be the first time.

And please this is not to get defensive about any ills in India or elsewhere. Not much is hidden in this world anyways. It is just to figure out whether this article serves any purpose at all to any section of the world. Not that it needs to.

No !!!! - Those who cant take criticism cant improve.

Yes, India has problems; none of us are ignorant to this fact. This is just another in the centuries-long ORIENTALIST literature. Oh, they might outsource, build the bomb, be techies, have hot actresses BUT well le’s just face it they’re BACKWARDS.

This article brings to mind the annual US State Department Human Rights Report on offending countries…ironic how there is NEVER one on the US itself! Lately China has been compiling a Human Rights Report on the US. A MUST READ

http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/international/20020123begwer-audio.html

Nothing is going to get better in India, if there is no open discussion and criticism.

It does make for depressing reading, but I guess the first step is acknowledging the problem and then moving onto solutions with other people who share your proactivity (?)

2) IGNORANCE in the poor people about availability of healthcare facilities provided by the government.

3) Even middle class/ upper middle class people (Indian) that I met in US had no idea that there is FREE care in Government hospitals.

4) There is a perception that Government hospitals provided sub-standard care.

My sister and Jijaji are doctors working in a government hospital. They told me once that by the time poor patients get to the government hospital they have already been to one of these private hospitals to get “better” care, but when the doctor over there realizes that this case is too complex they advise the patient to go to the CIVIL hospital. So when the Doctors at CIVIL hospital gets a chance to treat these poor patients, their situations are dire.

4) Unscrupulous doctors running “private” clinics in poor areas are also one of the causes for the situation mentioned in NYT article.