Covid treatment costs in state hospitals double than private

KABUL (Pajhwok): Public sector hospitals lack enough treatment facilities for Covid-19 patients as compared to private sector hospitals but the cost in public hospitals is as high as twice than in the private hospitals, Pajhwok Afghan News findings show.

In this report, Pajhwok has sought to investigate the cost of Covid-19 patients’ treatment in public and private hospitals in capital Kabul.

According to the Ministry of Public Health, since the outbreak of the virus in Kabul at least 35,971 individuals have been tested positive out of 342,459 sample tests.

So far 2,100 individuals have died of the virus, 21,596 more recovered and 4,914 active cases still exist in Kabul.

According to Pajhwok’s investigation, most of the patients have visited state-run hospitals and some of them were under treatment from five to 15 days in these hospitals.

Afghan govt receives 13 billion afs in aid for fighting the virus:

After the virus outbreak in Afghanistan in the last months of 1398 solar year, domestic and foreign sources provided financial assistance to the Afghan government to combat the disease.

Information about the aid is existed on the website of the MoPH, which shows that 14,124,490,000 afghanis from the outbreak of the virus until the end of 1399 fiscal year.

According to the table shared with Pajhwok by MoPH, about 8,680,590,000 afghanis budget was allocated for the 1399 fiscal year.

According to the MoPH, 1,515,163,722 afghanis have been paid to 48 contracting companies for providing medicines, masks and other medical facilities, from the beginning of the first wave until the end of the 1399 fiscal year.

Similarly, about 1,574,887,321 afghanis have been paid in salaries and expenses of Afghan-Japan hospital, Kabul ambulance, central laboratories, Esteqlal hospital, 50-bed Dash-i-Barchi hospital and the center of the ministry since the first wave until the end of 1399 fiscal year.

According to figures from MoPH shared with Pajhwok, from the beginning of the first wave of the virus until the end of the 1399 fiscal year, about 25,193,689 afghanis were spent on medical equipment and salaries for staff of the Kabul Public Health department.

In addition to the consumption of about 25 million afghanis, 4,977,500 afghanis were spent over the purchase of medical facilities and oxygen system equipment for Mohammad Ali Jinnah Hospital.

Treatment of Covid patients in public hospitals:

Dr. Eid Wali Mansour, head of Mohammad Ali Jinnah Hospital, told Pajhwok that a Covid patient did not have a specific time frame for how much it would cost and how long it would take to treat the patient.

But he said patients with mild Covid symptoms only needed oxygen and that patients were discharged in less than a week.

Mansour went on to say that patients with medium symptoms stay in hospital for one to two weeks and is discharged after being prescribed medication.

He added patients with severe symptoms of the virus stay in hospital for 15 days to a month. According to him, oxygen, medicine and a mask are needed for a patient 100 percent.

Based on information, each Covid patient admitted to Mohammad Ali Jinnah Hospital, without oxygen, cost 5,000 to 10,000 afghanis a day to buy medicine.

According to him, 2-3 oxygen balloons are needed in 24 hours for patients with mild symptoms and 5-7 such balloons oxygen for patients with medium symptoms.

He cited that patient with severe symptoms consume 12 oxygen balloons per day, each balloon containing 42 liters of oxygen, and the price of each balloon in the Kabul market is 400 afs to one thousand afghanis.

Mansour added since the first wave, about 500 patients had been admitted in Jinnah hospital, of which 200 had died and 300 more recovered.

According to Mansour, if a patient with medium symptoms, for example, stays in bed for ten days and consumes six oxygen balloons a day, his average cost of medicine and oxygen is 11,700 afghanis, his total consumption cost will be 117,000 afs in 10 days.

Covid patients’ treatment in private hospitals:

Pajhwok spoke to several private hospitals working on the treatment of coronavirus infected people and receive some information from the City Hospital.

Abdul Jabbar Momenyar, a doctor at City Hospital, told Pajhwok that public hospital services were not enough for Covid patients and that the MoPH should have allowed private hospitals to get involved in the first wave.

Momenyar estimated the cost of a Covid patient’s examination as 1,500 afs to 2,000 afs, saying the cost of a patient’s bed would be 1,500 afs every 24 hours, so for a patient from the day he was admitted to the hospital until recovery costs 1,5000afs to 20,000afs.

According to Momenyar, each patient who is admitted for 15 days pays 40,000 afghanis, but there were also a number of Covid patients who were discharged after five days in bed and paid less than 10,000 afs.

He said if a patient with medium symptoms and admitted for 10 days, his/her daily cost of oxygen would be 6,200 afs and it reached 62,000 afs until the last day.

Coronavirus experience:

Rahila, original resident of Mazar-i-Sharif and an employee of a telecommunications company was admitted to Mohammad Ali Jinnah hospital after contracting coronavirus.

About the hospital service, she told Pajhwok: “When I went to the hospital, I was admitted without my test being positive but I was discharged after five days in bed.”

“I don’t think I spent more than 5,000 afghanis in the five days I was in the hospital; because I was prescribed only oxygen and tablets of percetamol and other medicines,” he added.

Noorullah, who spent his Covid-19 infected period at the Afghan-Japan hospital in Kabul said: “I was admitted for 13 days in Afghan-Japan hospital, they gave me only percetamol, oxygen and some other medicines which I did not spent 2,000 afs a day.”

MoPH did not respond:

Pajhwok shared the certain issues with Mirwais Alizai spokesman for MoPH, he said: “Contact Dr. Lais Mustafa, who is in charge of the coronavirus department at the ministry.”

But after a few days and repeated calls, Dr. Mustafa refused to respond.

Result:

Considering the large amount of money that the international community, including the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and other sources, has provided to the government of Afghanistan to combat the virus.

However, it cannot be seen that the figures provided by MoPH for the treatment of Covid patients are more than actually consumed by patients.