The Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) may soon have a specialised knee replacement unit and a decision is likely to be taken in a few days.
The Chief Minister, K. Chandrasekhar Rao, is keen on starting this facility as a whopping Rs. 25 crore is being claimed from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) for knee replacement surgeries by people availing the benefit from across the State. More than 600 patients have sought financial relief so far under CMRF for this highly skilled surgery.
Invariably, all this money is going to private hospitals that charge three times the fee charged by a speciality hospital like NIMS. Private hospitals charge around Rs. 4.5 lakh to Rs. 6 lakh while NIMS charges around Rs. 2 lakh, depending on the patient’s requirement and complexity of the problem.
The government expects the number of such surgeries to increase in future given the sedentary lifestyle of people and the increasing preference for surgery over treatment with just medicines. Instead of the government money going to private hospitals, it is better to have the specialised facility in NIMS itself, feel officials.
The Chief Minister seems to be keen on this not only to save money but also to make it affordable for patients. He is said to have discussed the idea with officials who too supported it. If the idea fructifies, it will be a boon for patients suffering from knee problems.
When contacted, the NIMS director, L. Narendranath, said the hospital had the expertise and a dedicated wing would be created if the Chief Minister desires so.
He, in fact, said that such surgeries could be done at NIMS at half the cost of private hospitals, thus increasing its reach to the common man. “We will even train doctors from Gandhi and Osmania hospitals to extend the facility.”
As of now, knee replacement surgeries are done at NIMS case by case in the absence of a dedicated wing.
