‘No complaints’ for patients at private hospitals roped in by AMC

Fifty per cent beds in these hospitals are reserved for AMC-referred patients. Manilalbai’s wife was discharged a week ago from the same facility. He said, “I have no complaints about anything here. Even when I did not feel like eating the food and asked for fruits, it was provided.”

Echoing similar feedback, Manilalbhai’s daughter Jyotika Parmar (35) who works at UHC Mansa said, “The hospital staff is very co-operative… We had no clue that there is such an arrangement at private hospitals till a team from AMC informed us and said my parents would be admitted to CIMS.”

Jyotika who tested positive later is undergoing treatment at the SVP Hospital run by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). Her brother who runs a paan shop, sister-in-law and their daughter, too, are admitted to another private Covid hospital — SMS Hospital in Chandkheda.

All six members of the Parmar family got treatment free of cost — five at private Covid hospitals and one at AMC-run hospital. Covid treatment costs for private patients at CIMS Hospital range from Rs 20,000-25,000 for ICU and over Rs 10,000 for general ward.

Private hospitals joined the fight against Covid only after the Gujarat High Court order on May 22, directing strict action against non-compliant hospitals. The AMC now has over 2,000 beds reserved for Covid patients across 50 private hospitals. The Indian Express visited Covid wards in two private hospitals that signed up with the AMC on Tuesday.

“We have an understanding with over 50 hospitals that have reserved nearly 2,000 beds for Covid patients referred by AMC. The hospitals, including corporate ones like Zydus Hospital and KD Hospital, have given consent,” additional chief secretary forest and environment Rajiv Kumar Gupta told The Indian Express, stating “that era is gone” when there were issues with private hospitals.

On Wednesday, AMC issued a notice to cancel the ‘C’ registration form for Bodyline Hospital in Paldi that was designated as Covid hospital, for charging fees from patients referred by the government. C-form is a licence issued by the AMC at the time of registration of the hospital.

“Rules are in place for not charging from AMC-referred patients. But we received a complaint of the hospital charging Rs 4,500 for Covid test on June 3. Similar complaint was received from another patient referred from SVP Hospital,” the notice issued by AMC stated.

Claiming to be the first corporate hospital to have admitted Covid patients, Dr Anish Chandrana, cardiologist and executive director of CIMS Hospital who is also vice-president, Ahmedabad Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association (AHNA), said, “The first patient came here on May 5. We have a team of nine doctors, including pulomonogist, infection specialist, physicians, intensivist and if required there is team of nephrologist, cardiologist and neurologist providing comprehensive treatment. We do not differentiate among AMC and private Covid patients.”

CIMS hospital has a total of six ventilators equally divided among AMC-referred patients and private patients.

Subhadraben Patel (70), a resident of Ghatlodiya area, was admitted here on May 31. “I have no health complication neither do I have any complaint about the treatment or other facilities here,” she said. Her son Shaileshbhai (47) who works in a printing press said he got to know about the facility from newspapers and then contacted the hospital.

Till Thursday, Ahmedabad reported 12,793 Covid cases of which 2,803 were active as on June 3. Of the total active cases, nearly 1,630 are in seven government hospitals and around 900 in 39 private hospitals. The city has reported 898 Covid deaths.

At Saviour Annexe Hospital on Ashram Road with a total capacity of 40 beds and two ventilators affirmed similar experiences by patients. Garlic vendor Kantaben Ugrejia (50) from Sabarmati area has been at the hospital’s Covid ward for 15 days after she was tested positive during an AMC screening of “superspreaders”. “Everything is good here… food, medicines, toilet…,” she said.

Jashodaben Gangaram (60) from Asarwa, who is also at the same hospital for 15 days was shifted by AMC from Civil Hospital Asarwa after four days, said “Civil Hospital was crowded; here it is better.”

Despite the number of private hospitals being roped in, experts feel still a lot needs to be done. “June is going to be the most disastrous month for Ahmedabad as more patients will get infected and there will be very high mortality too. Overall Covid bed requirement would be nearly 10,000 for the state… So I personally feel, June is the month where every day 600-700 admissions may happen…,” said Dr Chandrana.