Health agency admits violations by hospitals over dengue patients<\/p>\n
Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Irregularities had been found among 16 recommended hospitals
\nsupposed to provide free medical services for poor dengue fever
\npatients, the Jakarta Health Agency admitted on Thursday.
\nHowever, the agency said it would not impose any sanctions on the
\nhospitals.<\/p>\n
\"The 16 hospitals recommended by the agency should have
\nprovided free treatment and should have not charged any fees,
\nincluding medicine and administration fees, as long as the
\npatients are being treated at third-class wards and suffer from
\ndengue,\" agency official Murdiati Umbas said.<\/p>\n
Murdiati said hospitals must not ask patients for an ID cards
\nor letters issued by subdistrict offices to impoverished families
\nbecause the free service stopped being means tested from Feb. 20
\nthis year.<\/p>\n
However, Murdiati said it would be difficult to impose
\nsanctions on hospitals for not implementing the policy properly
\nas it was relatively new.<\/p>\n
She said agency officials had made phone calls to hospital
\nmanagement and reprimanded them over the irregularities
\nimplementing the policy.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Indonesian Health Consumer Empowerment
\nFoundation (YPKKI) issued its findings from a 10-day
\ninvestigation to the 16 hospitals from March 6 to March 16
\ninvolving 175 dengue patients.<\/p>\n
The YPKKI revealed about 27 percent of dengue patients being
\ntreated in third-class wards still had to pay for medical care,
\nincluding costs for needles, prescriptions and intravenous
\nliquids. It also found 20.6 percent of dengue patients staying in
\nemergency rooms had to pay for blood tests and medication.<\/p>\n
The non-governmental organization listed the Cipto
\nMangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM), Fatmawati Hospital and
\nCilandak Marine Hospital as those violating the government's
\npolicy by charging full fees to dengue fever patients.<\/p>\n
Other hospitals of Mintohardjo Navy Hospital, Antariksa
\nHospital, Harapan Kita Hospital, Budhi Asih Hospital, Suliyanti
\nSaroso Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Koja Hospital,
\nPersahabatan Hospital, Tarakan Hospital and Sukamto Police
\nHospital were also found to have charged dengue patients.<\/p>\n
YPKKI head Marius Widjajarta said the free-service regulations
\nwere unclear, meaning hospitals interpreted the policy
\ndifferently.<\/p>\n
Tarakan Hospital in West Jakarta provided free treatment for
\npatients from outside Jakarta, while Budhi Asih Hospital in East
\nJakarta only provided free treatment for Jakarta residents, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The YPKKI also found irregularities in the starting date of
\nthe policy implementation.<\/p>\n
\"We found that Koja Hospital (in North Jakarta) put out an
\nannouncement it would not charge the public for dengue treatment
\nstarting on Feb. 24, four days later than other hospitals,\"
\nMarius said.<\/p>\n
Agency finance head Salimar said patients who had already paid
\ntheir medical bills at the hospitals could claim their money
\nback.<\/p>\n
She said the agency would instruct the hospitals to return the
\npatients' money. If the hospitals refused to do so, the patients
\ncould contact the agency directly.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/health-agency-admits-violations-by-hospitals-over-dengue-patients-1447893297",
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