I am a doctor and am a member of the Medical Protection Society (MPS). There are other similar organisations servicing professionals in the medical industry (eg. Medical Defence Union (MDU)) and other professionals.

I am a doctor and am a member of the Medical Protection Society (MPS). There are other similar organisations servicing professionals in the medical industry (eg. Medical Defence Union (MDU)) and other professionals.

The MPS is an international non-profit society that has members who pay a fee (depending on the risk their particular discipline carries with respect to litigation costs). In return, it mainly provides (amongst other services)...

· assistance to members in the event of litigation, in the form of medico-legal teams ie. expert medical witnesses / analysts(which may be MPS members themselves) and legal counsel (who are fluent in the laws of that particular state / country). They assist in analysis of the merits of every case individually and advise members on issues of negligence, causality of outcome and compensation amounts (where applicable)

· Should the case be defendable in court, they provide all the resources to be able to do this, esp. to uphold the members reputation, career, and integrity

· Should the case not be defendable, settlements are negotiated (and SOMETIMES paid in behalf of the member)

· assistance to members with disciplinary (or other) hearings / inquests with regulatory bodies or the courts themselves

· assistance to members with inquests with courts

In addition, other services provided are ...

· help to members with ethics related issues (research or clinical pracitice related)

· Inform members in respective countries of changes in regulation pertaining to the practice of medicine in that country - by a periodic magazine / correspondence

· educate members of common pitfalls that have resulted in litigation of other members and how prevent them in the future - in this same magazine

Of note, members receive no payout (unless called upon as an expert witness - they receive a payment for their time and expenses). All they receive is information on prevention / avoidance of litigation and the resources to be able to defend themselves should the need arise. This is not an investment or insurance. Essentially, members supporting members, colleagues for colleagues in their time of need (should it be thought that the colleague deserves defence and has a meritious case)

Doctors are NOT obliged to become members. However, doctors may be 'forced into' becoming members because of the following:

· Public service employees are not required to be members to be employed. But should a problem / litigation arise as a result of an incident whilst on duty for a public service provider, it is unlikely that the department of health will provide such service to the accused doctor, irrespective of their apparent innocence / guilt (the Dept of health themselves are being litigated and having difficulty defending itself!!)

· Private service providers almost ALWAYS insist on the employee being a member. No membership = No locum work / no agency work / no partnership

· Sole / independent pracitice leaves one vulnerable to unnecessary inquests / ethical issues / litigation. Whilst there are those few cases where the doctor's actions / negligence is questionable, the majority of cases arise from vulnerable, unprotected,unaligned doctors being unjustifiably challenged

· In some countries, unprotected professionals are 'sought out' and litigated by 'patients' who make their living by litigating doctors

· Genuine mistakes DO happen - nevertheless reputations and integrity have to be defended even of the action cannot

· Not all issues relate to mismanagement of a patient. Some relate to alleged fraud, perverse incentives, kickbacks etc.

· Professional jealousy can make an unprotected doctor an easy target for questionable practice and litigation

· No membership is like driving without a seatbelt

· outcome may not always meet he patient's expectation, by no fault of the doctor

· Patients who have problems accepting a life-changing diagnosis, look for someone to blame

· Patients who cannot afford prospective medical costs look to litigate the doctor for the financial security

· Good samaritan work sometimes has a poor,sometimes expected, outcome for the patient - this is another source of litigation for the doctor who rpovided a service purely out of the goodness of is heart.

· ONE litigation experience (irrespective of whether the doctor IS innocent / guilty and whether s/he is FOUND innocent / guilty) can be enough to end any career, no matter how established / new. Just having one's name attached to such an experience (irrespective of litigation outcome) can be detrimental to one's career by damaging reputations, integrity and may result in bankrupcy and debt in trying to defend oneself. Costs can run into the hundreds of thousands and claims for compensation easily into the millions. This phenomenon is escalating at an alarming rate in this country esp. in our post apartheid era where human rights is the new buzz word and patients are more educated and have better access to information eg. internet

Integrity and reputation must always be appropriately protected. Even though membership is not compulsory, can one practice without it ?? The risks to honour, integrity and reputations are too great when one considers the type of work that is done.

Is this a form of Qimaar?

Is being a member, permissible under these circumstances and situations?

If no, why not?

What are our alternatives?

How do we educate our Muslim doctors?