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7. Question of ascertaining medical negligence has been cropping up time and again. Guidelines and criteria for ascertaining the medical negligence laid down in Bolams case reported in (1957) 2 AII ER 118, 121 D-F still hold the field. This test, in popular parlance is known as Bolam Test after the name of the petitioner.

In short the test is as under:-

[Where you get a situation which involves the use of some special skill or competence then the test as to whether there has been negligence or not is to the test of the man on the top of a Clapham omnibus, because he has not got this special skill. The test is the standard of the ordinary skilled man exercising and professing to have that special skill. A man need not possess the highest expert skill. It is well established law that it is sufficient if he exercises the ordinary skill of an ordinary competent man exercising that particular art (Charles worth & Percy, ibid., para

8.02)  

8. Bolam test was accepted with approval in the following judgments:-

(I)                Sidway V. Bethlem Royal Hospital Governors and Others 643 All England Law Reprots (1985) 1 All ER.

(II)             Maynard V. West Midlands Regional Health Authority 635 All England Law Reports (1985) 1 All ER.

(III)           Whitehouse V. Jordan and Another 650 All England Law Reports (1980) 1 All ER.

9. Presumably because of persuasive value of Bolams case that our own Supreme Court has in case after case and particularly in Indian Medical Association Vs. V.P. Shantha & Others (1995) 6 SCC 651 wherein Bolams case was also discussed has adopted this test as guidelines for the courts to adjudicate the medical negligence. Latest judgment of Supreme Court on this aspect is Jacob Matthew Vs. State of Punjab and Another (2005) SCC (Crl.) 1369. Observations of Supreme Court are as under:-

A highly skilled professional may be possessed of better qualities, but that cannot be made the basis or the yardstick for judging the performance of the professional proceeded against on indictment of negligence.

The test for determining medical negligence as laid down in Bolams case, WLR at p. 586 holds good in its applicability in India.

10. While dealing with the concept of criminal medical negligence as well as the medical negligence the broad principles laid down by the Supreme Court are -