NEW DELHI: Most people who underwent non-emergency surgeries in private hospitals reported a lack of transparency on treatment costs and difficulty in identifying good healthcare service providers, according to a survey conducted in six cities, including Delhi and Chennai.
The survey, Surgical Care in India An insight of Patients’ Experience, conducted in the age groups of 20-40 years, said that non-availability of health insurance was also a concern among patients who were primarily middle-class, working in the private sector, as they bore the cost of surgical treatments as an out-of-pocket expense.
Also, those covered under health insurance failed to utilise it due to limited coverage, said that the survey, jointly conducted by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), an NGO representing the digital services industry with over 400 Indian and multinational corporations as its members, and the Bureau of Research on Industry and Economic Fundamentals (BRIEF), a research and consulting organisation.
“The patients reported that they took monetary support from friends and relatives for the surgical treatment,” the survey said, adding that patients expressed the need to make surgeries affordable for all economic groups along with different modes of payment such as EMI options, credit systems, or monthly saving plans for elective surgeries,” the survey said.
The expenditure on treatment is two-fold for patients from other cities, who come to these metro cities for surgeries, as medical expenses with boarding/lodging expenses increase the financial burden on them. “Such patients demanded good surgical facilities in non-metro cities,” the survey said.
For the survey, 280 patients from six cities Delhi (NCR), Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad who took surgical treatment between the years 2019 to 2022 were interviewed. While 69 per cent were male, 31 per cent were women.
The survey found that 83 per cent of patients selected private healthcare service providers, followed by trust hospitals (nine per cent) and government hospitals (eight per cent).
Study on 280 patients from 6 major cities
For the survey, 280 patients from six cities Delhi (NCR), Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad who took surgical treatment between the years 2019 to 2022 were interviewed. While 69 per cent were male, 31 per cent were women