Nearly 200 patients undergoing dialysis at ESIC Hospital in Sanathnagar at a unit run under Private-Public Partnership (PPP) staged protests against the hospital, apprehending halting of services.
The disgruntled patients are availing dialysis at a 31-bed unit run by NephroPlus, a private health services provider, on the hospital premises. On Monday, they staged a sit-in protest claiming that the unit is being closed without a valid reason and their well-being is at risk.
“We were told that the unit will be closed for a month. They have not told us why, but have instead directed us to private hospitals,” said S. Sashidhar, a patient leading the protests.
The patients fear treatment at other centres may not be of comparable quality and the scheduling of the sessions may not be convenient. They also said the hospital’s management has not considered their plea, forcing them to protest. The patients have threatened hunger strike starting Tuesday.
Representatives from Nephro Plus said a minor issue was cited as reason for termination of services from September 1. They added it was resolved as per their terms of contract with the hospital. “We were shocked when ESIC sent a notice to withdraw services without adhering to terms of MoU signed six years ago. There was a minor biometric process issue which we have addressed within the cure period offered in our contract,” said Nephro Plus Founder and CEO Vikram Vuppala.
“We request ESIC to withdraw its notice and let us run the dialysis unit for another 10 months as per contract,” he added.
Members of the hospital administration maintained services of the private service provider were being stopped in the interest of patients, but did not detail the reasons.
“We decided to start services on our own in the interest of patients. Patient care will not be affected as we have roped in private hospitals while we ease ourselves to run the unit. As a backup plan, we also have the support of NIMS,” a senior official of the hospital management said, requesting anonymity, following meetings with government officials and the Home Minister.
