India is one of the most densely populated countries in the world and it is almost next to impossible for any dentist / medico to initiate a dental clinic in his own separate stand alone facility / building especially in metros.
To initiate a healthcare facility in a stand alone building is almost next to impossible in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities in India and even in Tier 2 cities will be very expensive and commercially unviable.
Therefore most of the healthcare facilities in India are in apartment complexes wherein other residential apartments and commercial offices coexist .A vast majority of OPD type healthcare facilities exist in buildings which are residential in nature.
The law is very clear on this issue and you can have OPD type healthcare facilities in residential complexes with some restrictions and precautions.
However the purpose of this blog is to outline my experiences with my neighbours.
I have already written one blog on this topic The link is here:
Now in any apartment complex most of the inhabitants are happy that up clinic is around and especially so if the clinician is skilled and good natured.
There are a few who are aloof and there are a few who are against the clinician and his facility .
In this blog I will outline by experiences with such troublesome neighbours .What I outline over here is based not only on my experiences but also of other clinicians who have faced similar problems.
To put it in brief such neighbours are AFFLICTED BY TERRIBLE JEALOUSY towards the clinician and his facility and this is especially so if the footfall in the facility is high and the clinician has a good reputation. And a vast majority of successful clinicians are basically soft skilled and accommodating by nature. This encourages these nasty neighbours to create problems for the clinician.
These neighbours will go to any extent to create problems with facility.
They will impose restrictions on the movement of patients and staff and also levy commercial charges on the clinic. They will find innovative ways and every opportunity to create problems for the clinic and the clinician.
Clinicians all over India have faced such problems and harassment from their neighbours.
Now let me describe in some more detail their pattern of thinking .
They feel since the clinician is making money anyway so let us extract as much money as possible from him. Now even though the law allows OPD clinic in an apartment complex , many a times they will question the legality of the existence of the clinic. They also feel that they are doing a big favour to the clinician by allowing him to practice and therefor ethe clinician should be subservient to them and obey all their whims and fancies. They also expect the clinician to humour them and bow in respect to them. Besides these people usually have a very poor knowledge of the law.
Now what is to be done :
1. To begin with the clinician must take a proper legal opinion before he intends to start practice in an apartment complex.
2. Keep himself updated on the latest laws.
3. If the housing society is levying commercial charges and especially exorbitant commercial charges on a clinic I would strongly advise the clinician to immediately initiate legal action against the housing society after taking a proper legal opinion. This must not be delayed and any delay will weaken your case.
4. You must however continue to pay the justified maintenance charges and with hold the commercial charges and ask for receipt of the same.
5. Clinicians all over India have faced terrible problems created by neighbours and the clinician must ensure that the his quality of clinical service is not affected by such bad human beings.
