Pune, Oct 9 (UNI) The price capping by the government has almost halved the revenues while the reservation of 80 per cent beds for the COVID-19 patients has reduced hospital's capacity to treat other ailing persons, said Ruby Hall Clinic CEO Bomi Bhote here on Friday.

His observation came while discussing the challenges faced by healthcare professionals during the pandemic.

Talking to UNI, Mr Bhote told, "There is also the constant speculation that private hospitals are charging more. The rates that are fixed by the government are extremely low. We have given 80 per cent of the beds to Covid. The doctors and nurses who are catering to Covid patients and who are working for more number of hours these days, their salary is increased. But at the same time our revenue has reduced by almost half because of the price cap norm. Then while running a hsopital, how do you pay these doctors and nurses? Government should be reasonable in the capping."

"Also, there are many patients who are not suffering from Covid but from other ailments. The capacity of hospital to treat non-Covid patients has been reduced. Where will the non-Covid patient go? If all the hospitals are converted to Covid, where will non-Covid patient go? Also, government is asking for more contribution in terms of our ambulances, but how can we cater non-Covid patient if we do not have sufficient ambulances?," he questioned.

He further said, "The availability of beds is no doubt an issue that needs to be dealt with. Overnight there is a high resurgence in cases. And we have a responsibility to non-COVID patients also. But there are many healthcare facilities that we can utilize by activating them facilities for Covid. Rajeev Gandhi Hospital in Yerwada, for example is unutilized. All the government hospitals that are not utilized should also be utilized in these times."

"During the pandemic time, we have realized the importance of good healthcare infrastructure that we should have in place. In a city like Pune, there are many government hospitals that are non-functioning. If the government is willing to do public-private partnerships in the future all the private hospitals would be willing to work with the government. The pandemic has led us all to build strong healthcare infrastructure for the future," he added.

He averred that the shortage of human resources is increasing among healthcare workers. He explained, "At the same time, all healthcare facilities are facing manpower problems. The shortage of doctors and nurses is a major issue that almost all healthcare providers are facing now."

"All routine administrative activities like data entry, form filling should be removed from healthcare workers and should be given to administrative staff. The paperwork is taking up a lot of time of all healthcare providers," he suggested.

Talking about the difficulty level in handling the patients, he lamented, "One of the main things is to manage the psychology of the people. To break this news that they are Corona positive is creating a paranoid situation among people. The paranoid factor is much more than any other disease."

Appealing people to wear mask, follow social distancing, and wash hands, he lastly said, "For the next six to eight months, living with COVID-19 is going to be a way of life for us. All the hospitals from Pune are facing many challenges, what is important now for people is to be disciplined."

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