Are we going to have an endless medical inflation?

[sdk]

I think you're questions are out of line and I think you should not continue treading the path you're embarking on.

I don't think so at all, it's this kind of corrosive thinking that should be pointed out and countered

I've heard this bullshit all my life

Never has anyone wanting controls on medicos have ever said, I'm a VP in TCS, i get 6L per month, and i donate 4L a month to charity and feel that doctors should do charity the same way

Or my last 3 generations studied in govt aided schools and colleges and each one of us served the rural population for 3 years in abysmal conditions to pay off me debt to society

Not a single soul ever said that i work for the govt and take only my initial joining salary, all increments, DA, TA, pay commissions and pension i give away to make treatment cheap for poor people and subsidize them

I laugh at these same people who demand medicos should do rural postings, free work, discounts, low fees fee and income restrictions to benefit society because we studied in govt colleges

Charity should be done by each individual as per his wish and not by govt diktat

 

[girishtd8262]

It is extremely necessary to counter such horse manure

My father retired the same year i graduated

Without a pension, i became the sole earner in the house

The gratuity he recieved went into buying me the shop

The equipment and interiors were done by me with a bank loan

And you expect me to accept restrictions on my practice and income imposed by these fat cat Johnny come lately

Not happening

What these pseudo bleeding hearts should actually be doing is taking people under their wing and paying for their treatment, education, clothes etc

What they actually are proposing is stealing money from me and my family to massage their ego of being considerate about society

Does any one know here how much does it cost to become a doctor, specialist and super specialist.does any one know the feeling structure to be paid at the age of 30yrs for super speciality if he had not wasted even a yr waiting for seat . It's around 30 lakhs per year for 3 yrs that too after marriage with wife to take care of forget about kids.

 

[sdk]

You are reacting as if you are the only soul in India that is in trouble. And trust me, ModiJi does not take my suggestions seriously.
If you wanted to hurt my feelings, you will be glad to know that you were successful in doing that.

You are reacting as if someone id PMO is looking at this thread.

Wtf, how does Modi come into this discussion

 

[Analogous]

What they actually are proposing is stealing money from me and my family to massage their ego of being considerate about society

Maybe not sir. While your personal experiences establishing a successful independent practice and a facility are more likely to inspire others, the thoughts and discussion on this thread are generic and need not be interpreted as targeting any one here. Let’s encourage exchange of ideas and opinions freely and amicably so that everyone can learn, even if we don’t agree on everything?

 

[Nitin K]

This thread began nicely with the non medical fraternity being educated by fm's in that field, the issues faced by doctors and hospitals.
Too bad it went down south with condescending remarks towards some. It could have been done politely without hurting anybody's feelings as people are ready to listen and learn provided it is explained in a proper manner.

 

[sdk]

Does any one know here how much does it cost to become a doctor, specialist and super specialist.does any one know the feeling structure to be paid at the age of 30yrs for super speciality if he had not wasted even a yr waiting for seat . It's around 30 lakhs per year for 3 yrs that too after marriage with wife to take care of forget about kids.

My first job in a major municipal hospital in 1992 was for Rs 1500 a month, my second job was in another municipal hospital at Rs 2500 a month. My lecturer was paid Rs 5500. My honorary got Rs 500 a month

The sweeper who cleaned the dept toilets was paid Rs 4500 and the seniormost dresser Rs 6500 a month

That essentially shows how well society considers us as professionals

 

[Donivlapog]

I understand your frustration but like Analogous said, these are platforms for healthy discussions. Your points can be put insofar it does not show your anger towards those who have questioned the very fabric of high cost and hyper inflation in some fields and instead you can put across your points with the coin having two sides ideology. Just think about it.

 

[Analogous]

I am from an era when the only option to study medicine was in Government colleges. My education was subsidised entirely by tax payers. I was paid Rs.600 per month after graduation (felt like winning the lottery) I worked in the public sector and have always received respect and gratitude from patients, their families and friends. Never having worked in the private health care sector I obviously don’t have the insider perspective of those who have. My belief is that almost all doctors in any institution are well respected as humans who care and help those in need.

If accessibility and affordability of quality care is an issue felt by anyone it is definitely something we all should be concerned about.
Health including curative and palliative care is a basic human right for all of us.

“Fundamental Rights: Article 21 of the Constitution of India guarantees a fundamental right to life & personal liberty. The right to health is inherent to a life with dignity. Articles 38, 39, 42, 43, & 47 put the obligation on the state in order to ensure the effective realization of the right to health.”

 

[panditji]

Even education has undergone huge inflation.

I agree and that's why I chose No Kids policy for myself

 

[Dr.Lakshay]

To put my thoughts in short,
You should consider the high input costs a hospital has to face. Everyone providing services to doctors wants to charge high and people taking services from us want to pay less which is not feasible.
We doctors have a right to earn after dedicating precious years of our lives to studies.
Private setups can not be expected to moderate their prices, in the end it is a business and it works on demand and supply model. Government/charitable hospitals exist for the poor.
Yes medical treatment has become expensive and it is going to become more expensive because of the increased input costs and policies the government is pushing on us.
No one asks lawyers to practice for free, who can charge upto 10-20 lakhs for a single appearance.
We doctors do plenty of charity by seeing poor patients for free in emergency as well as routinely. But if you can't afford a service you should not go to that provider.

 

[Donivlapog]

I agree and that's why I chose No Kids policy for myself

Very sorry to hear that.

 

[Donivlapog]

To put my thoughts in short,
You should consider the high input costs a hospital has to face. Everyone providing services to doctors wants to charge high and people taking services from us want to pay less which is not feasible.
We doctors have a right to earn after dedicating precious years of our lives to studies.
Private setups can not be expected to moderate their prices, in the end it is a business and it works on demand and supply model. Government/charitable hospitals exist for the poor.
Yes medical treatment has become expensive and it is going to become more expensive because of the increased input costs and policies the government is pushing on us.
No one asks lawyers to practice for free, who can charge upto 10-20 lakhs for a single appearance.
We doctors do plenty of charity by seeing poor patients for free in emergency as well as routinely. But if you can't afford a service you should not go to that provider.

Agreed but the inflation is huge. We are talking about nearly 4 times in the last 5 years.

 

[keith_correa]

I didn't want to say this but to hell with it, I'll say it anyways since many posts here are veering towards a lot of pomposity:
Medical education at MANY medical colleges is VERY hard hit by inflation and thus charge huge capitation fees.
Their students have to make up / recover that expense.

 

[TD150]

Lot of discussion has happened in this tread and I am surprised to know the members who are trying to convince others that:
1). High cost of education
2). Inflation
3). Years spend studying medicine,
Etc, etc
Are all factors for the increase in cost of treatment.

I would point out to few things which remains untouched.

First and foremost my point in my earlier thread about the mediclaim insurance policy and how a hospital takes undue advantage of it by raising unwanted bills, services rendered which are absolutely not necessary and part of the treatment/hospitalisation, which the insurance company refuses to reimburse to patient. Doctors visit charges are also billed on such days when the doctor has not even visited the patient, for which the patient has to raise his/her voice and get it corrected. Isn't it unethical? Who is at loss? This happens regularly in hospitals, unless the patient and their relatives are not alert and keep track of this, such hospitals get wrongful gains.

second, the blood test or whatever test required to be done are charged on seperate rates to patients depending upon the category of beds/room occupied. The patient goes to the pathology or test room, be it MRI/CT, Sonography, etc, etc. Why such double standards? Now some related such hospital services to 5star hotels and have said bla, bla on it. Does the 5star hotel have different rates when their customer visits their restaurant, depending on the category of rooms occupied. I would say that at least these 5star hotels have some ethics.

There are many such examples or instances which say so much against such hospitals. One has to experience this being a patient or his/her relatives.

It is also seen that some members have taken it very personal being a part of medical fraternity. There was nothing started by the OP about doctors in his opening post or was it? If that is so, even some doctors are earning money by taking commission from the medical shops, test centers, etc where they refer their patients for doing test. Further, prescribing certain company costly medicines to patients (when low cost medicine are also available) to earn a foreign trip, commission or what ever it may be called. At whose ultimate cost/loss?


My point to the members here is, Are such practices ethical? Are such gains rightful?

We all know about inflation and the rising cost. We also know that medical is a noble profession. We also know that patients have faith in doctors and do trust them blindly.

We also know how doctors have worked relentlessly during the COVID times. We also know about hospitals charging a bomb to COVID patients, were their bills were inflated so high (32lakhs and more) that anyone would be shaken by this. They were even billed for the safety suit (don't recollect the exact name at moment) which was made compulsory by government/protocol i.e fresh safety suit for examining each patients. Now some doctors were using one safety suits for a day to examine all COVID patients admitted under them and were charging full cost of such safety suits to each patients. Further, a mother and her minor daughter suffering from COVID were admitted on a single bed (so the mother can be near her minor daughter) and surprisingly the hospital billed bed charges and all related charges on two counts to them.

We have also seen the vegetable vendor, milk man, police, municipal authorities and many such people working towards society by providing their services considering it their duty to human beings. The vegetable vendor didn't charge a bomb for the vegetable he sold neither did the milk man. Neither they cribbed about inflation or rising cost. After considering all this they charges reasonably. All were out and risked the infection, just like doctors and hospital staff, then what makes the hospital or the members take aid of inflation to raise the cost so much?

again is this ethical? Now such hospitals and some doctors have started acting like agents to earn commission. A day will arrive when they will be related to estate agency type of working and people will start loosing faith and trust in this profession.

Is this to beat the inflation and cover up the overhead costs? Or are they trying to recover all their money spend on their education, etc, etc instantly in a couple of days?

 

[panditji]

This is purely a governance issue. Shouldn't governments categorize what is essential vs what is optional luxury? Cost of medical services must be controlled the way cost of petrol is - every service provider must provide services within a price range similar to how it is done with petrol. Hospitals should not be allowed to run the business how 5-star hotels are.

I didn't want to say this but to hell with it, I'll say it anyways since many posts here are veering towards a lot of pomposity:
Medical education at MANY medical colleges is VERY hard hit by inflation and thus charge huge capitation fees.
Their students have to make up / recover that expense.

Keith, you forgot to mention the huge cash bribes people pay for admissions in those medical colleges..

 

[keith_correa]

Keith, you forgot to mention the huge cash bribes people pay for admissions in those medical colleges..

Yes, how could I forget? Maybe I need to see a doctor for my forgetfulness. Not!!

It's hilarious to see them line up to pay hefty sums to get into these colleges to pay more money. They even have an NRI quota where they charge significantly less.

Take my money, fleece me, cause I want be "noble" in life!

 

[Hiten]

Once there was a common man
Who went along as best as he can

..along with the system he called India
a semi socialist democracy, I tell you

negligence of systems on many fronts
for decades he tolerated all the brunts

but... inflation soon caught up with him
and hope for good life started to dim

he no longer can afford basic things
as 'value' of Rupaiyah lost its sheen.

 

[Nitin K]

Once there was a common man
Who went along as best as he can

..along with the system he called India
a semi socialist democracy, I tell you

negligence of systems on many fronts
for decades he tolerated all the brunts

but... inflation soon caught up with him
and hope for good life started to dim

he no longer can afford basic things
as 'value' of Rupaiyah lost its sheen.

View attachment 82788

How true it is. Inflation will always be there like a dangling carrot in front no matter how the politicians pacify the public with reduced meaningless figures.

 

[dvraghavan]

Health is an issue that affects everyone. The cost inflation is real but it has valid reasons. As many have said, in last 20-30 years, due to improvements in technology and accessibility, lot of lives have been saved or quality of life improved. I remember my great-grandma getting a "open" cataract surgery in mid-80s and had to stay at hospital for 4-5 days. She had to walk with someone helping her at home for 1 month. But when my mom had to undergo cataract in 2008 types, it was over in 30 minutes and was back home in same day. She could go about her regular chores in 2-3 days.
Similarly, my father had a cancer and was operated upon and lived 14 years after that.
The only way that everyone can get quality healthcare is for government to build more of such free hospitals and ensuring they run with quality.

 

[spirovious]

I didn't want to say this but to hell with it, I'll say it anyways since many posts here are veering towards a lot of pomposity:
Medical education at MANY medical colleges is VERY hard hit by inflation and thus charge huge capitation fees.
Their students have to make up / recover that expense.

I guess free seats are still cheaper. Now many colleges not only medical one are own big shots and they are started as big earning source.