HC: Illegible Prescriptions Violate Patient Rights
The High Court has made clear prescriptions a part of the “right to life.” Doctors must now write in capital letters or use digital prescriptions to prevent deadly mistakes.
Doctors’ Bad Handwriting: A Serious Health Risk, Not Just a Joke
Many people know the common joke: “Doctors can’t write clearly.” But this is not just funny, it is a real and serious problem that can cause harm.
Doctors’ handwriting is often hard to read because of time pressure and heavy patient load. They see many patients quickly, forcing them to write fast. Over time, doctors also develop their own shorthand, symbols, and writing styles that others may not understand. Writing hundreds of notes and prescriptions can cause fatigue, making writing even less clear. Some doctors also assume that others in the medical field will understand what they meant, so they focus more on speed than clarity.
The risks are serious. Unclear handwriting can cause medication errors, delays, and even deaths. A Swiss study found that over half of prescriptions were hard to read, 4% were completely unreadable, and 3.5% had copying errors. In the U.S., poor handwriting causes about 7,000 deaths and 1.5 million medication mistakes every year. In India, one patient received the wrong medicine for six months because of bad handwriting, leading to serious harm.
The Punjab & Haryana High Court recently ruled that clear prescriptions are part of every person’s “right to life” under Article 21. The court ordered handwriting training in medical education and said all doctors must use digital prescriptions within two years. Until then, doctors must write in capital letters.
This decision aims to make medical writing clear, safe, and easy to understand for everyone.
Many people know the common joke: “Doctors can’t write clearly.” But this is not just a joke. It is a serious problem that can cause real harm.
