Good move by Health Dept
Health Minister Satyendra Jain launched an offensive on private hospitals for “not being honest in filling beds meant for patients from the economically weaker sections (EWS)”. The government will deploy officials in private hospitals to ensure that EWS patients get admission and free treatment.
Jain said Delhi has 41 such hospitals and a total of 623 beds kept aside for EWS patients.
In addition to this, 239 beds have been kept aside for EWS patients at Indraprastha Apollo hospital, the minister said.
“We got a new hospital of 239 beds, and that too one like Apollo, for EWS patients. Now we have a total 862 beds for EWS patients in private hospitals,” Jain said.
“The beds at Indraprastha Apollo came about through an order by the Supreme Court. But the occupancy of these beds has been poor. The reason for this is the unavailability of medicines and the fact that EWS patients have to buy their own medicines. We will give them subsidised medicines at Apollo.”
To ensure that patients are not turned away by private hospitals, they have to first approach a government hospital from where they will be referred to private hospitals.
“We have seen that occupancy levels are below than 50 per cent in these hospitals. We have made a new scheme, by which we will refer patients from government hospitals. Nearly 25 per cent of cases at the out-patient department can be referred to private hospitals. We will seek a report from hospitals where the EWS occupancy is below 80 per cent and appoint counsellors for it. For every 10 patients, there will be a government official monitoring the implementation of EWS quota in private hospitals,” Jain said.
Recruitment of patient welfare officers — a post which had been discontinued by the Delhi government — will start again. “Approximately, 85 such officers will be recruited,” he said. more