Number of patients falls
as charges go up
From Varinder Walia
Tribune News Service

AMRITSAR, Dec 14 — Even as the government has set a target of ‘health for all by 2000’ there has been about 30 per cent fall in the number of patients admitted to government hospitals in the past six months following imposition of exorbitant charges for medicare by the state government.

The ‘ill-advised’ decision of state government has, however, come as a blessing in disguise for private hospitals, where the number of patients has gone up.

As per data available with The Tribune, there has been a drastic fall in the number of admissions, operations and out-patient department (OPD) cases in Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur and its allied government hospitals after imposition of higher charges. In Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, alone, there was about 40 per cent fall in admissions in May as compared to the corresponding period in the previous year.

In May, 1998, 541 patients were admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, while only 329 patients were admitted there in May this year, registering a decrease of 39.18 per cent.

In June last year, as many as 541 patients were admitted to various wards of the hospital, while in June, 1999, only 388 patients turned up (fall of 30.21 per cent). There was 26 per cent fall in number of admissions in July in Guru Nanak Dev Hospital alone as only 445 patients were admitted this year compared to the corresponding period last year.

However, Dr H.S. Gill, Medical Superintendent, has claimed that the fall in number of patients in government hospitals here is not more than 20 per cent.

The total number of OPD cases in Guru Teg Bahadur and allied hospitals in May last year was, 3,337. It fell to 2838 in May this year. The total number of admissions decreased from 3711 (May, 1998) to 2688 this year.

What is alarming is the drastic fall in the operations done in government hospitals in this town, which was once known as one of the best surgery centres of the country. Only 1596 operations were done in May this year as compared to 2124 in the corresponding period last year similarly.

The OPDs decreased from 29,550 to 26,412 in July. The admissions to various government hospitals including Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, during the same month witnessed a drastic fall.

The figure was 4,057 in June last year, while it fell to 2,837 this year. The total number of operations reported from all hospitals here in June was only 1283, while it was 1958 in the corresponding period last year. The number of operations performed in all government hospitals in July was only 1746, as compared to 2427 during last year.

The total admissions of patients also fell to 2900 in July as compared to 3582 in the corresponding period last year.

Dr Prem Kumar, President of the PCMS Association, Punjab, has said that the fall in number of patients in government hospitals after imposition of higher charges is alarming. He has claimed that government hospitals are on the verge of closure in the wake of the new rates imposed on patients. While medical aid was being provided free of cost in various countries and other states of India, the Punjab Government had taken an ‘anti-public’ decision to impose charges, adversely affecting the common man.