India’s problem of overtreatment and overmedication
The Indian healthcare system is increasingly prone to overtreatment and overmedication, driven by excessive diagnostic testing and a fragmented specialist-focused care model. This trend often leads to unnecessary medical cascades, particularly affecting the elderly population.
Why it matters
It highlights a critical systemic issue in public health where the pursuit of advanced medical technology can lead to poorer patient outcomes and increased costs.
Modern medicine has never been more capable than it is today. Tests detect illness earlier, scans reveal invisible abnormalities, medicines prevent and treat diseases, and interventions and procedures can save lives within minutes. Yet, the same system that can do more is increasingly tempted to overtreat and overmedicate.
Overtreatment and overmedication are not simply the use of an unnecessary medicine but often a chain: a test detects an incidental abnormality, which leads to another test, a diagnosis and then a prescription that may become permanent. What begins as prevention can end in long-term medication or surgery. Then, in India, overtreatment coexists with undertreatment: unnecessary interventions are offered to some, while many others still lack essential primary care, affordable medicines and timely treatment.
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