Private clinics to bail out state hospital patients

Eleven private sector hospitals from Kolkata have decided to open their door for patients from state run hospitals.

Come March 1, patients referred from any West Bengal state hospital, will be able to conduct close to 100 diagnostic tests at a discounted rate in leading 11 private hospitals in the city.

Announcing this, Sajal Dutta, president of Association of Hospitals of Eastern India (AHEI) said, the step was first of its kind in India.

"We want to partner with government to improve the quality of healthcare in West Bengal. This facility will particularly help the poorer section of the society given that rates are subsidised between 40-70 per cent," Dutta said in a press meet here.

The facility will be available for patients with outdoor card issued by state hospitals. Rates for 87 pathology, seven radiology and two cardiology tests will be same across all 11 private hospitals.

The list of private hospitals include Apollo Gleneagles, Wockhardt, Westbank, Ruby General, B M Birla Heart Research Centre, Peerless, Woodlands Hospital, Belle Vue Clinic, Calcutta Medical Research Institute (CMRI), Kothari Medical Centre and Advanced Medicare & Research Institute (CMRI).

The move by AHEI is widely seen as the first step forward for greater public-private partnership (PPP) in days ahead.

The development gains significance as the state government has come under flak of late for mismanagement of public hospitals.

"Private hospitals utilise the profit earned from diagnostic division to subsidise a part of their main operation. But we are not looking at short term gain now. There is great potential for healthcare industry in West Bengal in the next decade. To harness this opportunity, PPP is the ideal model. This step will show our intent towards that," Satadal Saha, managing director of West Bank hospital noted.

Health Fair at Netaji Indoor Stadium

AHEI will be organising the Kolkata Health Fair 2004 from February 13-15 at the Netaji Indoor Stadium, Kolkata to showcase the advancement in different specialities at medical treatment and their related costs.

All 11 member hospitals will take part. Rupali Basu, chairperson of the organising committee and general manager of Ruby Hospital, informed plans were afoot to hold such fair in district towns as well.