Delhi High Court PIL Seeks Mandatory Digital Signatures for Medical Practitioners

A Public Interest Litigation filed in the Delhi High Court urges for the mandatory implementation of verifiable digital signatures by medical professionals to curb widespread document fabrication in healthcare. The plea highlights the need for authenticity in medical records and has been directed to relevant authorities for consideration.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Delhi High Court, seeking to ensure the mandatory use of verifiable digital signatures by all medical practitioners on electronic media. The PIL addresses the rampant issue of forged patient documents, including clinical lab reports, medical prescriptions, and certificates. This move is aimed at maintaining the integrity and authenticity of electronically transmitted medical records and prescriptions, amid rising fraudulent practices, according to the plea.

The court, led by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, instructed the petitioner to first approach the concerned authorities through a formal representation. The court also directed the respondent authorities to respond within an allotted timeframe. Representing the petitioner Dr. Rohit Jain, Advocate Shashank Deo Sudhi emphasized that test results in laboratories are validated and clinically correlated before being released by a registered medical practitioner, who bears medico-legal responsibility for these reports.

An RTI reply dated December 3, 2019, disclosed that former MCI regulations required physical presence for report signing but did not clarify on digital signatures. Currently, reports are authenticated digitally on computerized systems, where doctors log in using IDs and passwords and authenticate the reports. However, it has been observed that doctors may allow associates to use their digital signatures without reviewing the work personally. This poses serious integrity issues, especially when a doctor resigns but their signatures continue to be used, unchecked. The plea argued for comprehensive guidelines to regulate the illegal use of scanned signature images, preventing their manipulation and ensuring accurate medical documentation.

The plea advocates establishing guidelines to curb the misuse of scanned digital signatures in medical diagnostic laboratories, hospitals, clinics, and all clinical establishments. Such regulations would mitigate competitive commercial exploitation and ensure accurate and reliable medical documentation, averting potential mistreatment of patients.