Government needs to listen to us too, say private hospitals

A week after the state government issued a circular extending the capping of charges for COVID and nonCOVID patients in private hospitals the Indian Medical Association IMA Maharashtra is set to approach the Bombay High Court Doctors are also planning a rally at Azad Maidan and protests at various government offices starting this weekOn August 31 the state government extended the price cap on 80 per cent beds in private hospitals although the hospitals had asked for some relief IMA members feel that the government did not take them into confidence while making decisionsState IMA president Dr Avinash Bhondwe said The government should listen to our concerns as well The rates at which we have been treating patients for three months are not affordable It is impossible to run hospitals under these conditions he saidThe appeal is expected to be filed in a day or two Dr Bhondwe said that over 150 doctors have died on duty and many have been infected As part of the protest the participants will selfquarantine for one to 14 daysDr Bhondwe referred to allegations against private doctors and hospitals as mudslinging and added that blaming private hospitals for the high death rate to hide its own failure is unfair on part of the government The government promised PPE kits free of cost but none of the private hospitals received them We have to purchase them at Rs 1200 a piece COVID patients need 4090 litres of oxygen per minute in the ICU The government could have reduced the rates or given waivers for electricity bills he saidAlso ReadCOVID19 vaccine trial to start in Mumbai this weekEquipment being wastedOn the other hand around 70 nursing homes asked to stop treating COVID patients have also raised objections Dr Aniruddh Ambekar CEO of Lifeline Group of Hospitals and secretary of the MidSegment Hospital Association said that nursing homes made significant investments for the pandemic We purchased BiPAP machines additional ventilators and had to pay higher wages to the staff to treat COVID patients Then suddenly we were asked to stop admitting COVID patients We cant survive by treating just nonCOVID patients he saidDr Ambekar added that while nursing homes and smaller hospitals have been asked to focus on monsoonrelated ailments it is a tricky situation since they have to deal with COVIDlike symptoms There are so many patients who would like to be treated in a private hospital and are not getting beds I think the patient should be given a choice and the government can inspect our infrastructure to decide he addedBig private hospitals too raised concerns over regulations that reduce bed capacity At Lilavati Hospital the sixth and eighth floors are COVID wards while the seventh floor with around 80 beds is a changing areaThe authorities have overlooked certain beds which get consumed as donning and doffing area where doctors nurses or resident medical officers change wash and wear PPE kits In doing so beds on that floor are not being used said Dr Jalil Parkar a pulmonologist at Lilavati HospitalAug 31Day the state govt extended the price cap80 per centProportion of COVID beds that have a price capKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news