IT`S unfortunate to see one`s health slipping out of one`s hand while moving to and fro between the public and private healthcare facilities. The healthcare facilities run by the state do not have the capacity to accommodate the number of patients or to manage the quality of healthcare dispensed. On their part, private-sector entities expect people to come with a fortune at their disposal. Add to it the financial constraints and exorbitant charges of pathologicallaboratories, and there you have it; a perfect blend of misery and apathy.The charges related to laboratory tests account for half, if not more, of the total medical bill. My knowledge in this regard increased when my mother, aunt and uncle had to be admitted to a private hospital intermittently for two months. At the time of each discharge, I was rather perplexed to notice that more than half the hospital bill related to laboratory charges.
If I had all the tests done by some laboratory outside the hospital, the bill would have been surely much lower, but hospitals do not allow any such thing. They want every penny out of a captive patient. In these inflationary times, private healthcare entities need to bring down the charges of consultancy and alllaboratory tests so that the sufferers may get some relief.
