Standardization of hospital equipment urged
JAKARTA (JP): In an attempt to meet massive domestic demand for affordable and secure health machinery, the Indonesian Hospital Association (Persi) called on Monday for the standardization of the country's health equipment.
"It's outrageous that all along we don't have any institution in charge of regulating the standard quality for health tools in the country," the association's chief of general affairs Robert Imam Sutedja said during a media briefing.
An authorized board that can declare the safety and quality of the devices used in the treatment of humans must be established, he said.
"Political will from the government is badly needed. We are talking about people's lives here," he said, adding that the board can be facilitated by the health ministry along with the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT).
The ironic thing is that many Indonesian health products are exported overseas and hospitals end up buying them back with certified foreign labels and at much higher prices, Robert said.
He cited an example of how hospitals still imported a simple Chinese-made incubator worth some Rp 15 million, which would be a lot cheaper if it was produced here.
"Such things happen due to the fact that we do not know the quality of our own country's products. We don't know whether the incubator will burn the baby, do we?" he said.
A total of 1,100 hospitals also have to struggle to maintain their quality and service given the country is still suffering from an economic crisis.
The depreciation of the rupiah against the dollar in 1998 caused a surge in the cost of imported medicines and health equipment by almost 300 percent.
"Once prices go up, they are unlikely to go down," association chairman A.W. Boediarso lamented.
In a bid to cope with the problem, a Group Purchase Alliance (GPA) between the association and the Australian Medical Solution was set up earlier this year, aiming at purchasing good quality but affordable drugs and medical devices.
"This way we can buy any medicine from any country and the price will be transparent and far cheaper. No more cheating. For instance, the price of antibiotics in a small health clinic will be equal to the price in major hospitals," Boediarso said.
Australia has developed a specific industry for medical supplies for over 70 years, he said.
"The spirometer, a device used to measure the capacity of lungs, can be bought at around A$10,000 to $12,000, cheaper than the price here," Boediarso added.
Persi also signed on Monday an agreement with Catcha.com to become its prime health website at www.pdpersi.co.id.
Dubbed the most complete health website in Indonesia, it contains a directory of more than 300 hospitals in eight provinces of West, Central and East Java, Bali, Aceh, West Kalimantan, North Sumatra and South Sumatra.
"We hope to complete it soon for all 27 provinces.
"A hospital price list, the names of the doctors and their specializations, consultation features, scientific and medical news, medical technology and suppliers along with education info can all be accessed here. So people can have options," he said.
The association will hold its 8th Congress jointly with the 13th Hospital Technology Expo at the Jakarta Convention Center from Nov. 5 until Nov. 9, with the topic being the Improvement of Health Services Towards the Asian Free Trade Agreement (AFTA) 2003.
"We will discuss the management of hospitals, policies on the price of drugs and medical devices, and the possibility of foreign medical experts thronging this country," he said. (edt)