Despite a government scheme for treating deaf children for free, hospitals show a low uptake
Despite a free scheme for treating children with hearing impairment by the central government, few hospitals are conducting the surgery. Also, a paltry number of patients have undergone the procedure.
The uptake of The Scheme of Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fittings of Aids/Appliances (ADIP) is poor. Even as an estimated 10,000 hearing impaired children require cochlear implant surgery, only 1089 surgeries have been done so far under the scheme, an almost one tenth of the total affected.
While 323 surgeries were conducted in government hospitals, upto 766 surgeries have been conducted in private hospitals, according to a reply on a question raised in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
While upto 158 hospitals, of which 43 are government-run and upto 115 are private hospitals, have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the central nodal agency - Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Speech and Hearing Disabilities (AYJNISHD) for conducting cochlear implants, only 83 hospitals have conducted the surgeries, while the rest had not performed any.
Of the 1089 surgeries, only seven hospitals has conducted over 30 surgeries.
“Hospitals have to get patients. If you have a known surgeon with more experience, a patient will prefer that over any other. Most implants in India are done in children, mostly uptil six years of age. The younger the implant is done the better,”said Dr Milind Kirtane, wolrd-renowned ENT surgeon from Mumbai, who has conducted close to 2700 cochlear implants in his career.
Dr Kirtane said, “Government hospitals in certain areas of the country do not have requisite infrastructure to facilitate cochlear implants. Why should people in such areas be bereft of an implant, so patients prefer private hospitals.”
On whether the scheme had broken the cartel of cochlear implant surgeries being restricted to a few surgeons in India, the reply stated that the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment was providing surgery with a ceiling of Rs 6 lakh per child. Procurement of implants is made by Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO), Kanpur, which is a Central Public Sector Enterprise. “This has resulted in reducing the cost of cochlear implant from Rs 4.40 lakh to Rs 3.67 lakh,” said the reply.
Skewed surgeries
- Upto 158 hosppitals in India have entered into an MoU with the nodal agency, Ali Yavar Jung National institute of hearing disabilities to conduct cochlear implants
- Of which, only 83 hospitals have conducted the surgeries, while the rest had not performed any.
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