Private hospitals ready to work with govt if directed

The government is yet to outline specific plans to utilise private hospitals for treating coronavirus patients although many of those are running out of patients due to the fear of the virus. The hospital authorities also do not have any joint initiative but they wish to work alongside the government to stem the global pandemic.

According to a number of hospitals and clinics, they arranged some isolation beds for COVID-19 patients or suspects as per the government instructions. Some hospitals are also taking preparations for the treatment of novel coronavirus patients. Authorities of some of the hospitals agreed to spare a part of their facilities. An institution has prepared a separate building. Many private hospitals and clinics are taking initiatives, in small and large scale. But there is no coordination in this regard, nor does the government monitor it.

Speaking to Prothom Alo on 29 March, health department director general Abul Kalam Azad said, “Private hospitals have been asked to open isolation units. There will be beds as per their capacities. But treating COVID-19 patients in private hospitals will be difficult. Many will not be able to manage. The hospitals may lose regular patients in the process.”

The managing director of a private hospital in the capital’s Shyamoli area has expressed disappointment over the current situation. On condition of anonymity, he said, “None of the senior physicians are coming to the hospital. Patients do not feel confident if they do not see the senior physicians. Patients are leaving the hospital.”

On average, around 140 patients take treatment in the hospital taking admission daily. It reduced to 60 on Tuesday. Almost no patients are coming to the outdoor.

The managing director also said the situation would not change unless the government take steps.

According to the health directorate’s estimation on 31 March, the number of registered private hospitals and clinics in the country is 5055. The total number of beds in those hospitals are 90,587. There are 737 ICU beds, of which 494 are in Dhaka division. Remaining seven divisions have only 243.

Managing director of Labaid Specialised Hospital in the capital, AM Shamim, told Prothom Alo that about 70 per cent of the country’s 100,000 beds in private hospitals are now empty.

It has become urgent to open a separate control room for private hospitals and clinics, he observed.

However, director of health department (hospital) Aminul Hasan said, “We had meetings with private hospitals and clinics more than once. As per the decision of the meeting, we have published notice with necessary directives.”

The notice, which was published in several national dailies, emphasised the importance of opening the isolation unit. For example, a 15-bed clinic should spare at least one bed for isolation. If a hospital has more than 300 beds it has to separate 20 beds for isolation unit. In addition, some general guidelines for isolation unit are also mentioned in the notice.

Private hospital and clinic owners’ association president Moniruzzaman Bhuiyan said, “The ratio of beds of the isolation unit has been fixed following the government’s directives. We have collected PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) for physicians, nurses and other health workers on our own.”

Many of the private hospitals have now very few patients. Most of the beds are empty. No one knows how long this crisis will last. However, each hospital is making its own arrangements.

Preeti Chakraborty, executive director of Universal Medical College Hospital in the capital, said, "Keeping the risk of infection in mind, we arranged health examination at the entrance of the hospital. If anyone is found to have symptoms of COVID-19, we send them to the government-designated hospital.”

Some hospitals have launched telemedicine programmes. However, several hospital owners remarked that the health ministry could use the private hospitals more effectively.

AMA Shamim of Labaid hospital said some hospitals have multiple buildings. The government could use one of them.

For example, he said, there are fewer patients in two Labaid hospitals. It is possible to accommodate the patients in one building while the government can use the other one for treating coronavirus patients.

Many private hospital owners say the number of patients with fever, cold or cough has decreased in the hospitals now. They have been refusing treatment.

Since it is dengue infection time, the patients will be deprived of treatments if initiatives are not taken immediately, they said.

However, Zafrullah Chowdhury, the founder of the Gonoshasthaya Kendra, said the private institutions should stand by the government, thinking of the country.

“They must not seek advantage from the government at this time of crisis,” he added.

He also said that the government can help these institutions by exempting them of all kinds of VAT and tax on the import of medical equipment and ventilators.

Private hospitals should also be given the opportunity to conduct tests for detecting coronavirus infection, he added.