Private hospitals, clinics fleece helpless patients

Absence of a well-thought-out government policy and strict monitoring over the health care system has encouraged private hospitals and clinics to be in a mad rush to charge exorbitantly.
Data showed that different service charges between public and private hospitals and clinics vary even to the extent of 30 times depending on their brands and locations.
Besides, charges in private hospitals, clinics and diagnostic centres also vary widely due to the same reason.
According to data, for admission in an intensive care unit (ICU), Dhaka Medical Hospital (DMCH) charges around Tk 3,500 per day and BSMMU Tk 5,000 whereas United Hospital charges Tk 25,000, Square Tk 18,000, LabAid  Tk 15,000 and Ibna Sina Tk 12,000.
Data showed also that for bone marrow collection, DMCH charges Tk 180, BSMMU Tk 300, Square Hospital Tk 10,000 and Ibn Sina Tk 1,350. For ultra sonogram, DMCH demands Tk 110, BSMMU Tk 250, Lab Aid Tk 1,500 and United Hospital Tk 2,000. For RBC (total count), BSMMU charges Tk 50, Square Tk 250 and Ibn Sina Tk 600.
However, charges for diagnosis and other medical services in these hospitals and clinics and other diagnostic centres are also similarly sky-high and vary among them abnormally.
Meanwhile, relatives of many patients of these clinics have complained to the authorities that some these hospitals and clinics on occasions refused to hand over the dead bodies to them for non-payment of dues.
Such a case happened recently in the city's United Hospital where the authority had kept a dead body for a couple of days as their relatives could not pay the hospital's abnormal charges on time.
"The hospital authority refused to release my father's body until the full payment of Tk 31 lakh," Sadia Islam, daughter of Mohammad Aslam told the FE.
"The hospital authority did not tell us about the accumulation of a large amount of charges beforehand. Payment of such on amount at that time was beyond our capacity. We wanted to give a written undertaking requesting the authority to receive full payment later but they insisted on paying all dues before the body was handed over to us," she said.
"Finally after two days, we made partial payment and received the dead body."
However, experts and different medical association leaders blamed the government's loose monitoring for the sufferings of the helpless patients and their families.
"All types of activities relating to the public interest should be under control and strict monitoring of the state, but in our country, the government has virtually no control over the private medicare system. This has encouraged the dishonest businessmen to mint money in medical services," former Pro-Vice Chancellor of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Prof MA Mannan told the FE.
He also said the government should immediately take steps to set a uniform standard in medical services and its charges.
Secretary General of the Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Dr M Iqbal Arslan said the association leaders on several occasions urged the private clinic and hospital owners to bring down charges for their services but they simply ignored the request.
 "These people are making huge money capitalising the helplessness of patients. This is no doubt an unethical business. We are ready to provide all supports to the government if it comes forward to end such unethical practices in medical services," he added.
However, Director (hospitals and clinics) of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr ABM Abdul Hannan said the authority several times also requested the private healthcare service providers to bring down charges and provide quality services but they did not listen to our request.
 "We are now working on a draft of a law on 'private health care system' so that private clinics and diagnostic centres could be brought under strict supervision of the government," he added.