More Cambodian People Benefit from State’s Medical Services

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea

Cambodians now increasingly go to get medical services and treatment at public hospitals and health centers, according to government officials and NGO officers.

They said Cambodian patients realized that public hospitals and health centers employed qualified doctors that could provide quality medical services and treatment. For the less well to do, they were indispensable as the services they offered were free.

Dr. Kdan Yuvatha, Deputy Director of the National Pediatric Hospital, one of the public hospitals in Phnom Penh, confirmed the trend, both in the Capital and the provinces.

Yuvatha continued “It is a good decision to choose our state’s hospitals and health centers for their treatment because our personnel are highly qualified and experienced practitioners.”

Previously, the people of Cambodia relied on traditional medicines and superstition. When they were sick, they went to seek treatment from the traditional healers or bought medicines at the local pharmacies. However, since the Ministry of Health, the hospital and health center personnel worked so hard on promoting the government’s treatment policy the people are increasingly aware of the benefits of state medical treatment.

He told the Cambodia Weekly that according to reports, this year, up to 300 children per day were brought to get medical treatment from the National Pediatric Hospital. Of these young patients, at least 15 of them required overnight treatment. He added that in 2007, there were between 100 and 150 people receiving medical checks and treatment from his hospital per day.

He also pointed out that according to the Ministry of Health’s decrees and the Cambodian government’s policy as a whole, the hospital was organized along lines that minimized the financial impact of receiving treatment. According to statistics, only 5 percent of those patients could pay for both medical treatment and accommodation. 45 percent of patients could pay only treatment fees, whilst the remaining 50 percent could pay for neither treatment nor accommodation. In those cases, medical treatment free.

Dr. Koum Kanal, Director of the National Maternal and Child Health Center in Phnom Penh, said that the trends were equally applicable in his hospital. Referring to a recent report, 42 percent of Cambodia’s mothers-to-be delivered their babies in state hospitals. This compares favorably to the 15 percent of deliveries recorded in 2005.

Dr. Meng Lee, Chief of the Roung Chrey Health Center in Battambang province, also reported consistent annual increases in the number of patients visiting his center since 2000.

Sum Sok, Program Officer of UNICEF based in Kampong Speu province, warned that in the opinion of a minority of patients, private clinics offered a faster service with reduced waiting times for medical procedures, compared to state hospitals.”

In reply, Dr. Kdan Yuvatha said that buying medicine from pharmacy shops for self-treatment was a potentially dangerous habit.

“Some doctors who own pharmacy shops in Phnom Penh and other provinces are not qualified. They dispense medicines to patients motivated by profit rather than sound diagnostic procedures.’

Dr Yuvatha explained that all sickness required examination by qualified doctors before a prescription be written out and that further monitoring was often necessary. Again, he urged parents to bring their family to the state hospitals or nearby health centers for treatment where there are qualified doctors, appropriate medicines, modern equipment and laboratories.

He added, “Our doctors care very much about our patients and are concerned for their wellbeing, not their wealth. There is good service and treatment for all who need it.”

Uy Ry, 45, a farmer living in Kandal Stung district, Kandal province, has a son at the National Pediatric Hospital in Phnom Penh. As a consumer of medical services, he had nothing but praise for the system.

“I turned to this hospital because it is a professional and well run organization, with the needs of the individual patient at the forefront of its activities; and the fees are very much cheaper than private alternatives. They have saved my son’s life and for that they have my eternal gratitude.’