BY THE WAY: White-Collar Terror – The Betrayal of the Healing Hands
The stethoscope was meant to listen to heartbeats — not silence them. Let us ensure that those who wear it do so with conscience, not commerce.
Dr Noour Ali Zehgeer
In a world already reeling from chaos, we often find our last refuge in the hands of those who heal. Doctors — the so-called saviours of life — stand as the final hope for the suffering. Yet today, a new and chilling ecosystem of white-collar terrorism is shaking the very foundations of that noble profession. What was once a symbol of compassion and service has, in some corners, mutated into a business of greed, deceit, and moral decay.
Please don’t be misled when someone says I am a doctor, he can be anything but not a doctor, doctor saves life he doesn’t plan deaths.
This is not an attack on the medical fraternity as a whole. There are countless doctors whose commitment remains sacred, who work tirelessly in remote areas, sacrificing comfort for care. But alongside them operates a darker breed — those who exploit sickness for profit, who manipulate diagnoses, prolong treatments, or trade ethics for commissions. Their crimes are not loud, but their consequences are devastating. They kill not with guns, but with betrayal — slow, calculated, and cruel.
The Silent Erosion of Trust
Trust is the cornerstone of medicine. It is what allows a patient to close their eyes and surrender their body to another human being. But that trust today trembles under the weight of shocking scandals — fake prescriptions, unnecessary surgeries, inflated bills, and horrifying negligence that often claims innocent lives. Each such act is a dagger in the heart of society, bleeding out faith drop by drop.
The political debate is still on has Abrogation of Article 370, helped to curb terror activities in Kashmir and India, BJP may have different argument, but the truth is that BJP at Central and LG Sahab in JK has failed people of this country again and again. They for sure need to introspect that what is going wrong and how to tackle Pakistan, so that these incidents are stopped once for all.
When crimes of this kind occur, the damage isn’t limited to the victims; it ripples across the collective conscience of society. People begin to question even the honest ones. The white coat, once a symbol of purity and service, now evokes suspicion and fear. That is the tragedy of this new white-collar terror — it not only destroys individuals, it destroys faith itself.
Accountability Is the Only Cure
The solution does not lie in vengeance but in justice. These predators must be identified, tried in fast-track courts, and punished in accordance with the law. The judiciary must ensure that such cases do not languish for years while victims suffer in silence. Swift, lawful, and transparent justice will serve as the strongest deterrent.
Moreover, systemic reform is urgent. Medical institutions must enforce strict background checks, ethical training, and transparent oversight. Licensing authorities need to monitor practices closely, suspend repeat offenders, and publish disciplinary records for public scrutiny. Hospitals must create whistleblower mechanisms so that honest professionals can expose wrongdoers without fear.
Society’s Role: Demand Ethics, Not Just Expertise
We, as a society, also carry a responsibility. It is time to demand ethics with the same urgency with which we demand efficiency. Awareness campaigns, community oversight, and patient rights education should be strengthened. Let patients know their rights, let medical errors be reported fearlessly, and let there be no veil to hide malpractice.
The true honour of medicine lies not in status or wealth, but in service. When a doctor betrays that trust, it’s not merely a professional failure — it’s a moral collapse. Yet, even in this darkness, there are many who continue to serve humanity with sincerity. We must protect them by purging the system of corruption, not by painting all with the same brush.
Healing the Wound Within
Perhaps the greatest healing needed today is not of the body, but of the soul of medicine itself. The white coat must regain its sanctity — not through rhetoric, but through action, accountability, and compassion. Justice must be done, seen, and felt. Only then can we reclaim the faith we have lost.
The stethoscope was meant to listen to heartbeats — not silence them. Let us ensure that those who wear it do so with conscience, not commerce.
(STRAIGHT TALK COMMUNICATIONS EXCLUSIVE. The views are of the author and not necessarily that of the Straight Talk Communications)
