Pushpa.Narayan@timesofindia.comWith about 3,000 outpatients visiting Tamil Nadu’s govt medical college hospitals each day, most spending two hours or more in queues at registration counters, the state plans to introduce a mobile app that will allow appointment booking.“We hope the app will help us tackle overcrowding, especially at our flagship hospitals such as Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital or Stanley Medical College and Hospital,” said health minister K G Arunraj on Thursday, on the sidelines of a review meeting of hospital deans. The app will offer half-hour slots, with bookings tied to a patient’s Aadhaar number. “We plan to outsource the app’s development and operations to a private agency. We are expecting the pilot soon.”Data from the National Survey Organisation 80th Round Health Survey shows that demand at Tamil Nadu’s govt hospitals is high as it is among the cheapest in India to receive care. The state’s private hospitals rank among the costliest.Patients at public hospitals in Tamil Nadu spend just `1,079 (urban) and `1,181 (rural) out-of-pocket per hospitalization — the lowest among major states, and a fraction of the all-India averages of `4,452 (urban) and `4,290 (rural). For inpatient treatment at private hospitals, Tamil Nadu patients face average bills of `79,000 (urban) and `68,000 (rural), exceeding the national averages of `58,000 (urban) and `43,000 (rural), and higher than in Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka or Andhra Pradesh.“This is not payment to doctors or nurses. It is money spent on travel, food, clothes and toiletries,” said Arunraj. “The gap in spending between the govt and the private sector is stark. I can assure you that the quality of treatment given at GH for obstetrics, cardiac care and trauma care are on par with private hospitals,” he said.However, he admitted basic facilities, including toilets, drinking water, and cleanliness, need to be shored up in GHs. “We are planning to set up a patient experience committee that will meet every week to assess whether basic facilities are adequate at govt hospitals.”Arunraj also said the govt plans to fill vacancies in nursing posts and increase specialist positions at district hospitals, acknowledging that sanctioned staff strength had not kept pace with patient load. “All facilities are on par with private facilities. People can trust govt hospitals.”“We hope the app will help us tackle overcrowding, especially at our flagship hospitals such as Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital or Stanley Medical College and Hospital,” said health minister K G Arunraj on Thursday, on the sidelines of a review meeting of hospital deans. The app will offer half-hour slots, with bookings tied to a patient’s Aadhaar number. “We plan to outsource the app’s development and operations to a private agency. We are expecting the pilot soon.”Data from the National Survey Organisation 80th Round Health Survey shows that demand at Tamil Nadu’s govt hospitals is high as it is among the cheapest in India to receive care. The state’s private hospitals rank among the costliest.Patients at public hospitals in Tamil Nadu spend just Rs 1,079 (urban) and Rs 1,181 (rural) out-of-pocket per hospitalisation — the lowest among major states, and a fraction of the all-India averages of Rs 4,452 (urban) and Rs 4,290 (rural). For inpatient treatment at private hospitals, Tamil Nadu patients face average bills of Rs 79,000 (urban) and Rs 68,000 (rural), exceeding the national averages of Rs 58,000 (urban) and Rs 43,000 (rural), and higher than in Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka or Andhra Pradesh.“This is not payment to doctors or nurses. It is money spent on travel, food, clothes and toiletries,” said Arunraj. “The gap in spending between the government and the private sector is stark. I can assure you that the quality of treatment given at GH for obstetrics, cardiac care and trauma care are on par with private hospitals,” he said.However, he admitted basic facilities, including toilets, drinking water, and cleanliness, need to be shored up in GHs. “We are planning to set up a patient experience committee that will meet every week to assess whether basic facilities are adequate at govt hospitals.”Arunraj also said the govt plans to fill vacancies in nursing posts and increase specialist positions at district hospitals, acknowledging that sanctioned staff strength had not kept pace with patient load. “All facilities are on par with private facilities. People can trust govt hospitals.”
