Medical bills rising due to defensive treatment

Mar 25, 2012 |

Hyderabad

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The rising cost of tertiary health care was the subject of animated discussion by senior doctors from the Andhra Pradesh Super-specialty Hospital Association (ASHA), who were speaking to media. Their view was that more doctors were now practicing defensive treatment and prescribing a string of tests to lessen chances of misdiagnosis, which was leading to escalating medical expenses for patients. Doctors are becoming averse to taking chances, considering the possibility of legal tangles and the resultant adverse media attention, it felt.

Dr Bhaskar Rao, CEO of Kims Hospital said, “Most patients, with dozens of attendants, turn up directly at the tertiary hospitals, instead of first going through primary and secondary health centres. The expenditure involved in running a high-end tertiary hospital is equivalent to running a five-star hotel. We have to pay all kinds of taxes. The cost of the floor space occupied by each bed in a hospital and manpower and technology needed to attend to a single patient amount to around Rs 60-70 lakh. Another problem is shortage of skilled healthcare staff, especially nurses from the state.” Problems get aggravated too when death occurs, even if it’s not due to medical negligence, Dr Bhaskar Rao pointed out.

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