A matter of trust

Not many citizens are comfortable visiting private medical clinics and diagnostic centres

In recent years, a host of private medical clinics and diagnostic centres have been cropping up across the City. Largely, this is because demand for these sort of services — standard fare like blood-tests, X-rays and the like — is peaking at present.

Since major hospitals don’t have the sort of facilities to cater to so many patients, the smaller clinics are doing brisk business. Many of them have opened up branches in different parts of the City and are minting money off the promise of accurate results and quick service.

At face level, such clinics might seem convenient. But the problem is that these enterprises exist for the sole purpose of making money; providing sound services to customers is generally a secondary concern.

   Often, they also have tie-ups with specific doctors, who ensure that they recommend their patients to the said clinic only.

“The problem with this is that sometimes, patients are asked to get completely unnecessary tests done. Doctors might prescribe a particular test — at a particular centre — in the interest of bringing more profit to that centre. Since these clinics are commercial establishments, the focus is on earning profit, not providing good services,” says Madan, a professional.

But Dr Huliraj, a physician, points out that this isn’t always the case. In his opinion, patients should learn to distinguish clinics run by medical professionals from those which are set up by third-parties.

“Some individual doctors run diagnostic clinics and as long as they are being run by professionals, they should be quite safe. At the end of the day, a doctor doesn’t want to lose the trust of his patients,” he says.

On the other hand, clinics which treat walk-in patients can’t be vouched for, he states. “Here, the doctor-patient relationship is missing.

The patient doesn’t know anything about the technicians at the clinic. The truth
is that these technicians aren’t always trained — now that the demand for such services has shot up, some parties can get away with operating clinics without experienced
or trained staff,” he elaborates.

The fact that many patients have had frustrating experiences at such clinics indicates that what he says is true.  

Shailaja, a graphic designer, says, “A simple thing like getting a blood-test done can be a nightmare at private clinics.

I visited one of the more obscure chains once because I didn’t have a choice — I needed to get a blood-test done as soon as possible
and my usual clinic was running at full capacity, which meant there would be a delay in results.”

“The experience was terrible — the receptionist didn’t have a clue what I was trying to say. I had to kick up a fuss before the technician agreed to open a fresh syringe in front of me. After that, I’ve decided to steer clear of such establishments,” she adds.
Nithya, a professor at NIFT, agrees that the safest option is to get these tests done at hospitals or with trusted doctors.

“I usually depend on standard hospitals which run check-ups. My doctor sometimes prescribes a test at a particular clinic but this is a trusted establishment, which is frequented by me and my family in case of an illness,” she sums up.