In a recent medico-legal case, the Punjab & Haryana High Court confronted a medical report so illegible that not a single word could be deciphered prompting the judge to urge reforms in how doctors write. The court recommended that medical curricula include lessons on legible writing, and set a deadline of two years to digitise prescriptions.

Poor handwriting in medicine isn’t just a cliché: it leads to wrong drug doses, delayed treatments, and legal confusion, even fatal errors. One classic study notes that illegible prescriptions may force unnecessary tests or misinterpretation, worsening patient care. 

Why does it happen? Doctors often juggle huge patient loads, scribble rapidly between wards, and repeatedly prescribe similar medications over time, clarity gives way to speed. Some blame the medical training environment, the pressure in hospitals, or habit. 

What are the fixes? Many hospitals now already use printed or digital prescriptions, which eliminate handwriting issues altogether. For others, the court suggests writing in capital letters, integrating handwriting classes in medical training, and pushing full digitisation of records. Meanwhile, AI tools are being developed to decode messy scripts.

The question this case raises is urgent: when doctors’ writing becomes impossible to read, does it violate a patient’s right to know and to safe treatment? The High Court’s intervention signals that, in the eyes of law, legibility is not a trivial issue it’s a matter of life, trust, and accountability.