In a significant step to strengthen the diagnostic services and enhance the image of government hospitals and medical institutions, Andhra Pradesh government has identified private service providers to extend all those diagnostic tests that are not available at the government District and Area Hospitals free of cost to patients from January 1.
Of 72 diagnostic services to be extended to patients coming to District/Area Hospitals, 19 tests were being provided by hospitals themselves. But from January 1, remaining 53 tests starting from blood, lipid profile to clinical pathology, microbiology also will be extended to patients on the hospital premises itself, according to Ms. Poonam Malakondaiah, Principal Secretary, Medical and Health.
All the mandatory diagnostic services will also be provided in all the 192 community health centres by January 15 and 1,075 primary health centres by January 31.
Objective
The objective is to strengthen the existing government services and leverage the facilities of private partners not only to reduce out of pocket expenditure to poor and lower middle class patients visiting government hospitals but also to bring down rates in the market for others.
At present, with several diagnostic services not available, poor patients are asked to get those tests done outside and get the reports adding to their physical and financial strain. Under the new system, service providers extending the diagnostic services will send their personnel to the hospitals, CHCs and PHCs to collect samples, do the tests and send results within the stipulated time.
Every thing will be monitored real time because of IT component and at the end of the day number of tests done in each centre are uploaded to the Chief Minister’s dashboard.
The feedback will not only help the Medical and Health Department to study the disease patterns across the State but keep a tab on the functioning of service providers who will be paid by the government based on their service.
Another innovative intervention the AP government introducing again from January 1 is tele-radiology services.
As the radiologists are in short supply, the department has tied up with a centrally located radiology centre where x-ray reports of patients in 113 community health centres will be sent in ‘image digitisation’ in the approved FDA teleradiology formats. The radiologists sitting in the centre will study images and send back reports online with their digital signature.
CT scan machines in four areas without district hospitals such as Tekkali have been ordered and they would be delivered by December 31 to be installed on the hospital premises but operated by private parties in PPP mode free of cost to government hospital referred patients and for a fee to outsiders.
The maintenance of medical equipment worth Rs.500 crore will also be handed over to a private company with 70 bio-medical engineers from December 26 for keeping them functional all the time.
As part of this, the company took up geo-tagging of equipment and completed it in all teaching and medical hospitals.
Call cente
It will be done in eight district and 31 Area hospitals by month-end. A call centre located at Vijayawada will take complaints of repair while zonal centres will be in Tirupati and Visakhapatnam.
