The Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association (PHANHA) has claimed that 58 out of the 384 private hospitals in Bengaluru have shut their operations, either permanently or temporarily, in the last one year.
As many as 25 of them shut down after the COVID-19 pandemic, said R. Ravindra, association president.
While some shut due to financial constraints, others closed as they were run by a single doctor who may have chosen to retire. “Many hospitals were finding it difficult to comply with the regulations and we hope to engage with the government so that some of them may resume operations,” said Dr. Ravindra.
The Head of a city-based hospital said that many of these hospitals were those with less than 50 beds. “It has become financially difficult for these hospitals to operate. In March and April, many of the hospitals had less than 20% occupancy and were unable to pay the bills,” he said. He said that while some of these hospitals will bounce back, many owners had decided to put their hospitals on sale.
Dr. Ravindra also said that many of the smaller hospitals had decided to convert their facilities to treat COVID-19 patients. “At these hospitals, they cannot have a separate COVID-19 section. So two or three hospitals in the neighbourhood will tie up and segregate to treat positive patients and non-COVID-19 patients,” he said.
