Karam Prakash
Tribune News Service
Patiala, September 30
Poor patients are allegedly being compelled to pay Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,500 ‘doctor fee’ at the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Tripuri before the surgery. Reason: As there is no anaesthetist here, patients are being asked to pay for a private doctor to perform the surgeries.
Around 25-30 surgeries are performed at the CHC every month. It has been learnt that the CHC has a tie-up with three to four private anaesthetists, who are available on call, for the surgeries.
However, as per the government rules, doctor fee —including OPD and operation charges — can’t be asked from the patients. This illegal practice has been going on for a long time and senior officials are said to be aware of it.
When contacted, Dr Sanjay Bansal, SMO, CHC, said, “We do not have any anaesthetist here. The government has a tie-up with private anaesthetists. We inform the patient about the fee well before the surgery.” He said the fee had been fixed by the government. “We have already informed the higher-ups about the vacancy,” the SMO added.
Meanwhile, senior health officials said they would appoint an anaesthetist at the CHC in the coming days.