I read with tremendous interest an article written by Asha Javeed regarding private health institutions profiting from the poor in the March 22 Business Guardian.

It was certainly a well researched and interesting article. It was relevant, since I recently had a relative admitted for surgery at a private institution in the West.

What really attracted my attention was the statement made by the Health Minister John Rahael, “and what they charge a night, just for the use of a bed, it is just like it’s a hotel: $950 for occupying a bed, $950 for pain. That is ridiculously high in my opinion.” He further stated, “my background is business.”

These profound statements by the Health Minister encourage me to reflect on my recent experience and my dissatisfaction with the hospital invoice.

I pondered on the minister’s statement “just like it’s a hotel” and, to be fair to the private hospital, I attempted to compare the similarities between a hospital and a hotel.

I assume that both a hospital and hotel have a property to maintain, housekeeping and a front office to admit/check-in and discharge/check-out patients/guests.

They both provide food and beverage, orderlies/bellboys, telephone, toiletries and laundry services. The computer and accounting systems must be similar for in-house billings and general ledger accounting.

I then retrieved an invoice from a Tobago hotel where my family stayed last year.

The hotel invoice revealed room charge plus ten per cent service charge and ten per cent government tax, food & beverage, laundry and telephone charges.

A review of my hospital invoice revealed a room charge, operating theatre and drugs charges. I realise the hotel room charge includes the room and bed, housekeeping and maintenance which can also be attributed to a hospital.

However, after further reflection, I realised that the hospital room charge must have included the state -of-the-art medical equipment, piped oxygen, all patient meals and nursing care.

Nursing care must be a major expense since so much is read about shortages and high fees paid to nurses by private institutions. Certainly, the hospital room charge covers a great deal more than a hotel.

One must also consider the special air-condition requirement for a hospital and the costly cleaning of ducts, etc. Certainly the maintenance cost for a hospital must be higher than a hotel.

I recall that my family member made several telephone calls to my house and mobile yet there were no hospital charges.

I even reflected on the required training of front desk employees and certainly it must be more time consuming and difficult to train a hospital CSR in medical terms and costings than it is a hotel which cover only types of rooms.

The hospital also provided toiletries and linen just like a hotel.

The waste disposal of body parts and hazardous items of a hospital must be far more expensive than a hotel.

The operating theatre costs, I assume, must cover the elaborate and modern medical equipment and tools, drugs and the nurses, technicians and assistants working in the department.

I soon realise that one was not comparing apples with apples and that all business is not about buying a bolt of cloth, adding a mark-up and retailing at a higher price.

I am now convinced that the hospital business is far more complicated and expensive and that my room charge was a fair price for the services rendered.

Certainly, the Minister of Health should understand the cost of running a public hospital and should instruct his advisers to do a simply analysis of arriving at the daily cost of the Port-of-Spain General Hospital and divide it by the number of patients and surgeries for the day and ascertain the true cost of medical care to the population.

Some surgical procedures—for example the one my relative underwent—is far more expensive in the United States and other local private institutions in Trinidad.

Thank you, Mr Minister, for allowing me the opportunity to appreciate that we have quality private healthcare available to the citizenry since you and your government have failed to deliver.

After contributing health surcharge and in spite of the vast wealth of this country our healthcare is atrocious.

A question arises: what really is the cost and the quality of public healthcare to the country?

Oh, by the way, I understand all the boast of clearing the backlog in surgeries was a result of help from private health institutions.

John Andrews

Petit Valley