Why hospital bills kill you

Hyderabad: Bypassing the standard protocol of visiting general practitioners or physicians, patients are lured into approaching corporate and super speciality hospitals only to pay huge medical bills, sometimes running into lakhs, for ailments that could otherwise be treated by spending a few thousands of rupees.

For instance in the prestigious Nims the consultation fee is only Rs 50 for a visit to a doctor, whereas in private clinics it would range around Rs 200 to Rs 300.

But the consultation fee in the corporate sector is Rs 500 to Rs 1,500 depending on the specialist who attends the patient. Most places also collect hospital charges and registration fees that may be another Rs 500. Corporate hospitals do not stop the consultation with one specialist and the patient is referred to as many specialists as possible to jack up the bill.

It doesn’t stop with the consultations. Patients then have to undergo several unnecessary investigations and surgeries. Despite the Medical Council of India Code of Ethics Regulations, 2002 clearly stating that referring to pathologists /radiologists or asking for any other diagnostic lab investigation should be done judiciously and not in a routine manner, corporate hospitals prescribe many tests including total body check ups and master check ups, leading to instant bills of Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000.

Patients, when shifted to Intensive Care Units, in many cases unnecessarily, have to spend Rs 3,500 to Rs 20,000 per day depending on the type of super speciality hospital. If it is a specialised ICU like NICU (neuro related), patients have to pay more.

Also, elderly patients with terminal illnesses are put on ventilators for days together only to increase the bills despite the fact that the chances of survival are bleak. If medications and investigations are added, the bills go up to Rs 20,000 — Rs 40,000 per day.

Under the false notion that expensive hospitals and costly medicines are the best, people under the influence of the “shopping mall” culture, directly approach specialists and super specialists in corporate hospitals.

Dr E. Gowtham Reddy of Hyderabad, who is into bioinformatics and ethical practise said, “Around 60 to 70 per cent cases are not emergencies. They can be dealt by general practitioners. Due to being misguided by different segments like PROs, brokers and RMPs, patients visit specialists.

For instance, for a simple headache they go directly to a neurologist. For non-emergencies, the first point of contact should be a general practitioner. Even chronic diseases like diabetes can be managed by the general practitioner and patients need not go to endocrinologists.”