Department of Health removes obstacles at Nghe An Dermatology Hospital

Tnot enough to cover expenses, owe salaries to staff

At the working session on the afternoon of October 24, the leadersNghe An Dermatology Hospitalreported the difficulties and problems at the unit. Accordingly: Regarding the apparatus and human resources, the hospital has 5 departments; 33 staff, including 17 doctors (12 doctors with practice certificates), 6 nurses, 2 pharmacists (college).

The hospital currently lacks a lot of specialized medical equipment and tools, instruments, and desks and chairs for staff to work. The specialized medical equipment that is still lacking includes biochemical testing machines (existing, damaged, or under repair), hematology testing machines, and microscopes. These three types of machines serve basic testing in the Paraclinical Department.

Therefore, Nghe An Dermatology Hospital has not met the regulations on signing medical examination and treatment contracts under health insurance due to the lack of university pharmacists to appoint Head of Pharmacy - Medical Supplies Department and in charge of the hospital pharmacy; there is no Paraclinical Department (testing - diagnostic imaging); and there is a lack of nurses.

Since the beginning of the year, the hospital has examined and treated 30,091 patients (voluntary examination), including CO2 laser and IPL treatment for 1,124 people, testing for 16,770 people and skin care for 2,551 people...

The total revenue of the Hospital from the beginning of the year to now is over 2 billion 787 million VND, reaching 42% of the estimate. Meanwhile, the salary fund to be paid to hospital staff and workers in 10 months is over 3 billion 055 million VND. The difference between revenue and expenditure is (-) over 1 billion 125 million VND...

Therefore, Nghe An Dermatology Hospital can only pay salaries until June 2023, and still owes its staff 4 months' salary. It is known that in 2022, Nghe An Dermatology Hospital also had a situation where revenue was not enough to cover expenses and owed staff salaries.

During the meeting, the leaders of Nghe An Department of Health listened to the thoughts, wishes, concerns and suggestions of the staff of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital, including the following contents: Lack of facilities, equipment, biological chemicals and supplies for work; difficult life of staff due to unpaid wages; loss of trust of staff in the current hospital leadership team; worries about the future of the hospital...

Based on this situation, the leaders of the Department of Health, the departments and offices of the Department of Health and the officers and employees of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital have analyzed and clarified the "bottlenecks" of the unit: One is the large number of patients but low income. Two is the failure to sign a health insurance medical examination and treatment contract.

Specifically: Nghe An Dermatology Hospital currently has a team of highly qualified doctors, so it has attracted a large number of patients (equivalent to specialized hospitals in the area). However, the hospital is lacking and has not yet deployed high-tech services; lacks basic medical equipment... Therefore, the hospital's revenue is low, mainly coming from examination fees, testing services and treatment techniques (which outside spas can also do).

The hospital is lacking human resources (nurses, university pharmacists) and equipment, so it cannot establish a Paraclinical Department, has not formed a pharmacy... so it cannot meet the conditions for signing a health insurance examination and treatment contract; affecting the rights of patients and the hospital's revenue.

It is known that in 2022, when Nghe An Dermatology Hospital showed signs of stagnation and underdevelopment, Nghe An Department of Health also held a general meeting, analyzed, pointed out the causes and proposed solutions to help the hospital stabilize. The Department of Health also established a hospital support team with 2 Deputy Directors of the Department as team leader and deputy team leader, with the participation of all departments and offices... The support team has implemented many solutions to help Nghe An Dermatology Hospital, but the hospital lacked initiative to accept and was slow to change.

The reasons for the stagnation and slow resolution of weaknesses have been clearly identified: The Board of Directors of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital lacks dynamism, creativity, sense of responsibility, and enthusiasm in developing the hospital. The hospital's leadership lacks unity, lacks democratic concentration, lacks exemplary behavior, and has not yet worried about and shared with staff.

Solutions

Nghe An Dermatology Hospital was established on September 23, 2019, according to Decision No. 3731/QD-UBND of the Provincial People's Committee on the basis of upgrading from Nghe An Provincial Center for Leprosy and Dermatology. The hospital is a public health service unit at the provincial level, grade 3, implementing autonomy in regular expenditures in group 2, under the Nghe An Department of Health.

Concluding the meeting, Dr. Nguyen Thi Hong Hoa - Director of Nghe An Department of Health stated: The establishment of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital is a correct policy, consistent with the development trend in general and of Nghe An province in particular, meeting the needs of medical examination and treatment and aesthetic care of the people. However, in the past, the Hospital has not performed its tasks well, promoting its functions and advantages.

The Director of the Department of Health also proposed fundamental solutions; clearly assigned responsibilities to each department, division, and individual in supporting Nghe An Dermatology Hospital to soon stabilize and develop.

Specifically: Hospital leaders are required to uphold a sense of responsibility for their work and units; enhance the role and responsibility of leaders, especially the spirit of setting an example, worrying about the development of the unit as well as the lives of staff and employees; build internal solidarity, unity, and democracy; consolidate and perfect the organizational apparatus; do a good job of ideological work for staff and employees; promote compliance with discipline, order, and hospital regulations and rules.

Hospital leaders improve management and operation capacity; review functions and tasks to promptly find solutions to overcome difficulties, develop unit development plans; have recruitment plans, improve professional quality, develop technical services...

Nghe An Department of Health agrees with the proposal to reorganize the leadership of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital to help the hospital stabilize and develop.

To develop expertise and technical services, Nghe An Dermatology Hospital needs to fully deploy approved techniques to sign a health insurance examination and treatment contract; perfect techniques towards comprehensive, on-site treatment, especially aesthetic technical services; make good use of the functions of the 20 existing hospital beds... In particular, it is necessary to end the situation where hospital doctors lure patients to their own clinics.

Along with the development of technical expertise, Nghe An Dermatology Hospital needs to build a green-clean-beautiful landscape; create a polite and civilized working environment; enhance spirit, attitude, and service; create highlights to attract patients and people with beauty needs.

The Director of Nghe An Department of Health agreed with the proposals of Nghe An Dermatology Hospital, including: Supporting the hospital to soon sign a contract for medical examination and treatment under health insurance; establishing a Paraclinical Department; putting the pharmacy into operation soon; purchasing medical equipment; training for staff.

The Director of Nghe An Department of Health clearly assigned tasks to departments and offices: The Planning and Finance Department guided the hospital to purchase equipment from the unit's career development fund and balance revenue sources to pay salaries for staff; reviewed the equipment and facilities that the hospital lacked to prioritize transfer and arrangement. The Medical Affairs Department guided the hospital to complete the techniques and conditions for health insurance examination and treatment.

The Personnel Organization Department transfers university pharmacists and nurses to Nghe An Dermatology Hospital. The Practice Management Department supports and guides the hospital in building a pharmacy. The Pharmacy Management Department supports and guides the hospital in purchasing chemicals, biological products, and consumables. The Department of Health Office supports and guides the hospital in developing information technology. The Labor Union and Youth Union of the Health sector share and encourage the hospital's staff in difficult circumstances and support the hospital in developing communications and promotion.

Also according to the Director of Nghe An Department of Health: The solutions are very clear, but the most important thing is that Nghe An Dermatology Hospital must unite, proactively overcome difficulties and rise up, avoiding the mentality of waiting and relying on others./.