E-Paper
Govt should fix reasonable rates for Covid treatment in private hospitals
The situation created by Covid-19 is truly unparalleled, exceptional. However, we had ample time and opportunity to understand the magnitude of the problem, learn
The situation created by Covid-19 is truly unparalleled, exceptional. However, we had ample time and opportunity to understand the magnitude of the problem, learn from the failures and successes of other countries and prepare adequately for the tsunami that would hit us. And the indications that one got from the government at the centre and the states were that we were well equipped to handle the situation.
Yet, the ground reality today is frightening and the health infrastructure seems to have completely collapsed under the weight of the growing number of cases. So much so that consumers are forced, like beggars, to go from one hospital to another, desperately seeking medical help. And this is true in both Covid as well as non-Covid cases. And then they have to beg, borrow or steal to pay for the exorbitant payments demanded by the hospital -- if they happen to be privately run.
A reader said he had a bad cold and some breathing problem and his employer admitted him to a small private hospital in Delhi, suspecting it to be Covid. The hospital however did not do any Covid test, just gave him a nebuliser and discharged him after two days, when his fever came down. His bill was Rs 2.16 lakhs. But price gouging is just one of the many problems that consumers are grappling with.
The other is the treatment of the patient – since no family member is allowed to be with the patient, the latter is completely at the mercy of the hospital and many patients have complained that let alone treating their ailment, they were not even given food or a glass of water during the day. There have also been complaints of missing patients, relatives not informed of the death of a family member, bodies being handed to the wrong family and worse, the most undignified manner in which some of the dead are being handled.
Usually, a chart on the patient’s bed carries his or her name, medical history, treatment given. The nursing staff also maintain a register of the patient. However, given the load on the hospitals, shortage of beds and the work pressure on the medical and the non-medical staff, there is every possibility of a patient being shifted to a different ward or bed (or moved to the mortuary if he is dead) without the accompanying identification.
So in an epidemic of this magnitude, common sense dictates that every patient be given an arm band or a neck band identifying the person and his or her contact details. This must be a standard protocol and adhered to as soon as a patient is admitted. That would ensure proper identification of the patient.
Similarly, since most relatives are anxious about the welfare of their dear ones admitted to the hospital, there should be proper mobile charging and WiFi facilities in the hospital that will enable patients to keep in touch with their family through video calls. This will not only allay the anxieties of the families, but also considerably boost the morale of the patient. This will also help relatives keep a watch on what’s happening and bring transparency in the hospital treatment .The hospital should therefore provide the facility to those patients who may not have a mobile phone that allows video calls. I am sure cell phone manufacturers would be only too happy to provide such phones free of cost to hospitals for the benefit of such patients.
Doctors and nurses are putting their lives at risk to treat patients today and hats off to them. But hospitals in the private sector are not showing the same spirit and ruthlessly exploiting consumers, who are in a highly vulnerable position. Unless the central and the state governments come to their aid, fix reasonable prices for the treatment of Covid and other diseases and enforce it, many consumers will face abject poverty , not so much from the economic slowdown, but from paying hospital bills.
