The price of affordability- A Link To Be Bridged- ABout hospitals(Health Care)

Hospitals
The price of affordability- A Link To Be Bridged

AS A DEVELOPING COUNTRY WITH MULTIPLE HEALTH CARE PROBLEMS, INDIA NEEDS PRIVATE HOSPITALS THAT CAN MEET THE HISTORICAL BURDEN OF FILLING THE SPACE LEFT BEHIND BY THE GOVT. HOSPITALS. IN KERALA, THERE ARE INSPIRING EXAMPLES THAT BY THEIR PERFORMANCE PROVED THAT THEY ARE UP TO THE TASK.

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Health care at affordable rates is a challenge to any society. Even the affluent countries do face insurmountable difficulties while addressing this issue. As for the developing countries with a third world tag, health care facilities at acceptable and reasonable cost are of paramount importance. In a country like India, this assumes serious dimensions, which affects the overall well-being and quality of life of the population as majority doesn’t have the wherewithal or financial sinews to access the quality medical service.

After India attained Independence, as we envisaged a mixed economy for the social reorganisation, the history of Indian health care system map was equally dotted with the contributions from private and public sector participation. Since the required efforts and inputs were massive and on an astounding scale, a synchronised style of working was required to address the grave necessities in the healthcare sector. In this connection, many private hospitals with a philanthropic bent of mind came into existence even in rural areas to cater to the needs of the deprived. But with the introduction of the liberalised economic agenda in 1990s, Govt is withdrawing from the health sector. This puts additional burden to private hospitals, both in terms of quantum of work they do and the type and profile of patients they handle.

Of late, the pace with which high priced diagnostic equipments and costly curative techniques are introduced, has become very fast. Now the situation is that the cost involved with the latest diagnostic and curative practises are getting high by everyday. As health care industry is capital intensive, the business proposition of a hospital won’t work, if one fails to charge proportionately. The failure to acquire the state-of-the -art gadgets of treatment and analysis will leave the hospital in a loop of failure as patients won’t turn up in enough numbers to sustain the economics of a hospital, as patients prefer hospitals with all modern facilities.

The paradox is that the charge the hospital can place on a service, is many times beyond the reach of middle class and lower middle class. A purely business hospital can turn a blind eye to that reality and safely sleep in the socially sanitised environment. But hospitals that are built and designed to help ordinary people are feeling the pain and pinch of difficulties associated with the financial management of bridging the gap between the legitimate charges for the investment and the charges that can be levied from the already hassled poor patient.

There are hospitals, which successfully filled this gap. They strive to fill this difference by prudent financial and administrative management, service mindedness of doctors and supporting staff, diversion of money from other businesses and free and nominally charged service of staff, as seen in the case of mission hospitals. These hospitals are pure examples of true spirit and public service. They are trying to address and mitigate the gigantic health care deficit we face as a nation, in their own way.