Kolkata: Private hospitals in Kolkata are wary of the state plan of referral of emergency patients from govt hospitals, which, they apprehend, could lead to a bed scarcity and non-payment of bills. While emergency patients were never refused, the extra load from govt hospitals could put a strain on their arrangements and resources, some feared.A Swasthya Bhavan meeting between health minister Sharadwat Mukherjee and representatives of some govt and pvt hospitals on Wednesday decided to link five govt teaching hospitals in Kolkata with nearby private facilities for the referral system. Medical College and Hospital, for instance, is set to be linked with Manipal Hospitals, Broadway, while National Medical College and Hospital could be paired with Manipal Hospitals, Dhakuria. RG Kar Medical College could tie up with ILS Hospitals, Salt Lake or Charnock Hospital.More clarity was needed, said Rupak Barua, president of the Association of Hospitals of Eastern India (AHEI). “It’s still not clear if all hospitals will be roped in or just those that received land from the govt. The latter have an obligation of reserving 10% of their beds for the underprivileged. But what about the rest? We need to know if emergency patients are to be treated and admitted or just stabilised and discharged when a govt hospital has vacancy,” said Barua, also the CEO of Woodlands Multispecialty Hospital.Payment of bills could be a contentious issue, he pointed out. “While govt hospitals have no charge, we do. Will the govt pay for these patients or will they be admitted under a govt health scheme? A patient may not be covered by a scheme,” he said.The head of another private hospital said while the purpose of the tie-up was good, logistic and financial barriers were bound to crop up. “Our emergencies often run full and we, too, face bed shortage. How do we guarantee a berth to an emergency patient being transferred from a govt facility?” he said.Some, like BP Poddar Hospital, said they would extend cooperation to any patient. “When a patient is referred to us, our emergency department will immediately undertake the necessary clinical triage and assessment. Based on the patient’s condition, the speciality team will determine the appropriate course of management, including the requirement for admission, critical care or bed support, medical management, intervention or emergency surgery, as indicated,” said Supriyo Chakrabarty, group adviser, BP Poddar. But he added that admission and further treatment “would be facilitated in accordance with the applicable protocol, subject to the availability of beds, speciality and clinical infrastructure at that point of time”. “Our priority will be to ensure every referred patient is assessed promptly and that there is no avoidable delay in initiating the appropriate level of care,” Chakrabarty said.
