PMGH charges challenged

CAN the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH) chief executive explain why doctors engaged as consultants at the hospital are charging unreasonable fees for services provided at the country’s premier hospital when all health services in government-run hospitals are supposed to be provided free?
I am totally bemused by how this particular doctor can ask a referral patient who has already used up his little savings on airfares and five weeks of daily expenses to pay another K3000 to K4000 for a lifesaving surgery.
How can the doctor charge a patient using his private clinic invoice when he is performing surgery at PMGH using public facilities?
Or is this a new arrangement where patients are to pay for consulting doctor’s services? The truth needs to be told.
For someone trying to seek a second chance in life such fees are mind-blowing and add more stress to the patient who has already spent everything and has nowhere else to get the extra money needed for the surgery.
I am willing to see the CEO with this doctor so they both can explain how they have arrived at such a fee.
To be fair, it should be about saving lives and not making a fortune out of a doctor’s specialist skills and knowledge.
Finally, this may be the tip of the iceberg where doctors at public hospital are performing private practices using public facilities and equipment for personal gain.

Frustrated Guardian
Port Moresby