BENGALURU: Nearly 32 per cent of people surveyed for a study are apprehensive about visiting a government hospital for COVID-19 treatment, where it is free, and prefer a private hospital. But 57 per cent of the respondents expressed concerns about exorbitant treatment charges at private hospitals. Also, 46 per cent fear contracting secondary infection in a government facility.
The survey, conducted by LocalCircles, a community social media platform, received around 40,000 responses to five questions on public perception of government and private hospitals for COVID-19 treatment. The findings revealed that 61 per cent of respondents want the government to cap the price or standardise the treatment and room charges in private hospitals.
As per the survey, people’s top worries were catching secondary infection due to crowd and poor adherence to infection prevention standards in government hospitals, while some highlighted lack of infrastructure. Interestingly, the survey found that 32 per cent of respondents did not want to go to a hospital even if tested positive.
In the red zones, many expressed concerns over limited capacity in private hospitals and long waiting time for admission in government facilities. "This explains why 32 per cent citizens say they will rather take treatment at home and go to hospital only for emergencies," LocalCircles GM Akshay Gupta.