Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Pvt hospitals still closed for poor patients: RTI reply by Pritha Chatterjee

Pvt hospitals still closed for poor patients: RTI reply by Pritha Chatterjee

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Feb 7, 2012   modified Modified on Feb 7, 2012

Nearly four years after the High Court mandated reservation of 10 per cent beds and 25 per cent out-patient facilities for the poor in private hospitals in Delhi, only some have complied with the order.

As per figures provided by Delhi government in an RTI response to Newsline, none of the major hospitals were able to treat the mandated number of patients. The government received 91 complaints about refusal of treatment last year.

Hospitals against whom complaints have been filed include Max Hospital in Saket and Patparganj (8 complaints), Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (5 complaints), Dharamshila Cancer Hospital (3 complaints) Sir Gangaram Hospital (4 complaints), Batra Hospital (4 complaints), Rockland Hospital (3 complaints), Fortis Escorts Hospital (2 complaints) and Jaipur Golden Hospital (3 complaints).

Seven of these complaints were lodged by government hospitals after patients referred by them were turned away. The Delhi State Cancer Institute, East Delhi, in its reply, said three poor patients referred in 2009 to Dharamshila Cancer Hospital were asked to pay bills ranging from Rs 24,159 to Rs 10 lakh.

Other hospitals to file complaints were the GTB Hospital and Safdarjung Hospital against Max and Batra Hospital, Madan Mohan Malaviya Hospital against Rockland Hospital and VIMHANS, and Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital against Action Balaji, Indian Spinal Injuries Centre and Rockland Hospital.

Health Minister Dr A K Walia said the government was “strictly monitoring” performances of private hospitals. A Health department official said: “Complaints were filed and notices have been issued.”

“Many private hospitals are turning away patients. We plan to issue contempt notices against them,” said advocate Ashok Aggarwal, a member of the committee monitoring treatment of economically weaker section (EWS) patients in private hospitals.

On admission of EWS patients from 2007 to the first quarter of 2011, the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital failed to provide even 1 per cent of its total bed strength to poor patients.

At Rockland Hospital, 2010 saw the highest number of admissions in the EWS category — 0.12 per cent of the total in-patients. At Max Hospital, Saket, 1.46 per cent of the total admissions in 2007 were EWS patients. Fortis Escorts Hospital also reported its best figures in 2007 with 2.71 per cent of its total admissions constituting poor patients. The figures declined to 0.22 per cent in 2010.

Primus Super Specialty Hospital was another with a dismal record — it admitted just eight EWS patients in 2008, two in 2009, 24 in 2010 and six in the first quarter of 2011. The out-patient department also saw a steady decline in the number of poor patients. From 4 per cent in 2007, it dropped to 1.66 per cent in 2010.

At Max Hospital, Saket, OPD attendance of EWS patients dropped from 15.49 per cent in 2009 to 10.10 per cent in 2010.

Referrals of poor patients from arterial government hospitals was also very low. Among Central government hospitals, Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital gave five referrals while Safdarjung Hospital gave two and

AIIMS 47 between January 2007 and September 2011. Two patients were referred from Lok Nayak and GTB Hospitals.Among MCD hospitals, Hindu Rao Hospital with 107 referrals between 2008 and 2010 treated EWS patients.

The Indian Express, 7 February, 2012, http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pvt-hospitals-still-closed-for-poor-patients-rti-reply/908723/


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close