Telangana government will dictate the prices that private hospitals can charge if they were to admit and treat a COVID-19 positive patient. Besides, they will also instruct the hospital the method of treating the patient.
Till Wednesday evening, suspects of COVID-9 were admitted only at Telangana government-run Gandhi Hospital, Musheerabad. However, Health Minister Eatala Rajender said on Wednesday that private hospitals which have isolation wards can admit the suspects.
A day after the announcement, the Health Minister said that they are allowed to treat provided they follow the government’s conditions on price slabs and treatment methods.
Besides, Director of Public Health Dr. G. Srinivas Rao issued an advisory to the private hospital’s managements on measures to be taken when someone with influenza-like symptoms walk into their hospital.
They were instructed to arrange separate counter for people who show influenza-like symptoms and have foreign travel history to COVID19 effected counties or had contact with person having the travel history.
At the separate counter, boards have to display which state ‘Counter for patients with influenza-like symptoms and travel history to effected countries or contact with those who travelled to effected countries.’
This is an important step as the index (first COVID positive) case from Telangana consulted doctors at a major corporate hospital on out-patient basis before he was diagnosed with the virus. The measure to have separate counters could help in avoiding such possibilities.
Complete details of such people have to be documented such as symptoms, travel history. They have to contact Gandhi Hospital's nodal officer for Coronavirus, Dr Prabhakar Reddy, for further course of action.
Dr. Rao stated in the guidelines that the hospital may manage the suspects provided they have isolation wards which comply latest guidelines by the Union government.
The hospitals can collect samples from suspected cases, pack and send them to ICMR laboratory at Gandhi Hospital.
Further, the hospital managements were instructed to train their doctors, health workers to prevent transmission. Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) had to be provided to health staff.
