Materia Medica Malaysiana

Government Hospitals May Not Accept Patients From Private Hospitals

The Health Ministry may cease the practice of government hospitals accepting patients from private hospitals for post-surgery treatment.
Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said the co-operation between government and private hospitals, established on mutual understanding and on humanitarian grounds, had long existed.
He added that it was unfair to put the blame on government hospitals if patients from private hospitals who were brought there died.
Dr Chua was referring to a complaint by family members of a rubber tapper who died at the Sungai Petani Hospital Wednesday.
They claimed that P. Rajamah died due to the hospital's delay in admitting her.
A report in a newspaper Thursday said that Rajamah was supposed to undergo an operation to reduce a swelling in the brain at a private hospital but was sent to a government hospital because the Intensive Care Unit at the private hospital was full.
Speaking to reporters after a working visit to the Temerloh Hospital today, Dr Chua said it had become a trend for private hospitals to send their patients to government hospitals on the excuse that they did not have ICU facilities or the patients could not meet the high cost.
"After getting the payment (for the surgery), patients are sent to government hospitals and, when the patients die, we (government hospitals) are blamed," he added.
Dr Chua said he did not want the government hospitals to be blamed for the death of patients from private hospitals.
"We are being accused of not attending to the patients, making them wait too long .... We have to review this and, perhaps, will cease the co-operation with private hospitals like in the case of accepting their patients for post-surgery treatment," he told reporters after a working visit to the Temerloh Hospital, here Thursday.
Earlier, in his speech, Dr Chua said the government had no plans to build new hospitals under the Ninth Malaysia Plan.
However, he said, several hospitals would be upgraded to ensure quality service for the people. He said the ministry would increase the number of health clinics, adding that there were 4,000 clinics nationwide.