About a month ago, a seriously injured youth was discharged from the intensive care unit (ICU) of Basbari-based Neuro Hospital on his family´s request and taken to Aaryaghat. [break]
He was injured in a bike accident in the capital and was kept in the ICU for a week.
The patient was still not dead and the hospital had not declared him dead either. His relatives were expecting an imminent death and they said they wanted to avoid more suffering for him. According to the relatives, the youth´s family had lost all money and property to pay for the treatment and the ICU bed.
This is not an isolated case. Government hospitals have very few beds in the ICU and they are always occupied by ailing patients. Private hospitals charge exorbitant rates.
Patients in private hospitals have to pay three times more than the government hospitals. Relatives keep patients in private hospital until they exhaust all their money.
Government hospitals are helpless and fail to expand the number of beds in ICU. Despite having 20 beds in ICU, Bir Hospital is operating only five of them. The hospital administration said it does not have manpower and ventilators to operate the remaining beds.
The hospital installed 20 beds in ICU five years ago. "Dozens of people come with recommendation for ICU beds, but I cannot do anything except expressing sympathy," Director of the hospital Dr Buland Thapa said. The hospital is providing ICU bed for Rs 3,000 a day but private hospitals charge up to to Rs 10,000 a day.
The hospital recently brought five beds in ICU in operation. A month ago, Bir Hospital had only one bed in operation in the ICU. Most ventilators in the hospital are defunct. Dr Thapa said the hospital bought three ventilators from Logistic Management Department (LMD), which is under the Ministry of Health to bring the five beds into operation.
Doctors and health workers at the emergency ward in the hospital are referring patients who need ICU care to private hospitals. They get commission from private hospitals and nursing homes for their recommendation.
"The only solution is to operate more beds in the hospital and it is beyond my capacity to do this, Thapa said. He said National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) has to take initiative to recruit manpower and buy equipment.
Similarly, Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH), has only six beds in general ICU. The hospital officials said due to critical condition of patients, they occupy the bed for longer time. "We cannot provide beds to new patients. If we take the patients out of ICU, they will die," Director of the hospital Dr Keshav Prasad Sing said. The hospital charges only Rs 2,000 per bed for a night. Patients have to pay additional Rs 1,000 if ventilator is used.
Director Sing said the hospital has maintained a register to keep phone numbers of the patients who seek bed. "We call the patient if anyone is discharged," he added.
Likewise, the Patan Hospital has only 10 beds in ICU and they always remained occupied.
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