Rohit Shishodia
Resident doctors of the Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital (GTBH) in Delhi have thumbed down the so-called 'Happiness Therapy' concept which includes doctors dancing with patients, launched recently by the Delhi Government in GTBH.

The doctors have said that this dancing and music will not work unless basic treatment facilities are provided to patients.

The doctors said that 'Happiness Therapy' is a good initiative but it should be implemented when the hospital has adequate treatment facilities which are not being provided to patients in government hospitals. They added that dancing in front of patients will not be in favor of patient-doctor relations.

Dr Amit Chopra, President, RDA-GTBH, told DTMT: “You don’t have basic facilities like cleanliness and doctors do not enjoy friendly environment with patients. If female doctors dance in front of patients, it will send the wrong message. Suppose the female doctor comes across this patient outside the hospital, he will take her for granted.”

Dr Chopra informed, “GTBH does not have an MRI machine for patients. The fund of setting up the MRI machine was sent to GTBH in 2016. I don’t know where this fund was spent. Why don’t they set up an MRI machine? There has been no convocation for medical students for five years. Doctors have a desire to obtain their degree in a convocation. We just want basic facilities and nothing more. The hospital does not have adequate security guards. And you ask doctors to dance.”

“This concept of 'Happiness Therapy' has been taken from western countries where a single patient is treated on one bed. But here, you will find three patients lying on a single bed and then you direct the doctor to dance with them. How can doctors dance after performing twenty four hour duty?" asked Dr Anil Singh Modi, Member, GTBH-RDA.

Dr Modi added, “Senior and junior resident doctors have conveyed the message to the hospital administration that they will not be part of this project. Dancing in front of injured patients and their attendants will not work.”

Dr Sumedh Sandhanshiv, President, FORDA-India, told DTMT “This initiative can be good when you have all healthcare services. If a patient has a fracture in his leg, or somewhere else, and you keep dancing in front of him, will it join the bone? Instead, it may aggravate the injured patient.”

Dr Sandhanshiv added, “This move will not improve the doctor and patient relationship. Instead it can worsen it. There is a bond between the doctor and the patient. And when you dance in front of patients, it will degrade the bond.”

Dr Sandhanshiv, said that FORDA doesn’t have any problem with music but it can’t be a treatment option. Instead, government should focus on improving basic treatment facilities and infrastructure.

Dr Ankit Om, Chairman, United RDA, said that happiness therapy is just an eye wash. “They are turning a blind eye to improving healthcare services. These are small initiatives. They don’t want to face real situations. These are publicity stunts. They should focus on Mantra instead of Tantra,” added Dr Om.