Doctors on the whole is a confused lot.
For the car salesman, he sells cars. For insurance agents, they sell policies. For the hawkers, they sell food. For the pastors, their product is the Gospel and services rendered to the flock.
For the lawyers, they are smart. They sell their expertise on top of all the other practice related expenditure like photostating. The accountant are not bad too, they see their expert opinion plus all the other cost.
We doctors and many medically related professionals like nurses and pharmacists, we are sad. We offer our expert professional opinion for free and we try to earn our money by fighting with the pharmacies selling medicine, or fighting with beauticians doing aesthetics, worse still fighting with illegal drug peddlers selling sleeping and slimming pills. All in the name of charity. Seriously, no one appreciate us. In fact, they are highly suspicious of our motives.
It is time doctors must recognise the product we are offering. For most physicians and GPs, we are offering our expert opinion. So, we should charge according to the amount of time and effort put in when offering these opinions.
Our surgical friends should also see their surgical skills as a product on top of their expert opinion.
How about charity? Learn from our friends in the legal professionals. Let us run charity clinics and offer free services and or at cost for the truly poor. Engage our medical social worker friends, people from RC, etc to screen these needy patients.
These free clinics can be set up by the respective colleges or AM. And each one of us do de bono. Our legal eagles friends are smart, lets learn from them.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Important Vaccination and Info Other than H1N1
In the excitement and frenzy of H1N1 vaccination, many of us forget the menace that could be created by other pathogens and other Influenza viruses.
For those of us belonging to the high risk groups such as chronic illnesses, airway diseases, muscular diseases and diseases affecting our immune system, it is important not to forget seasonsal flu vaccine and adult pneumococcal vaccine.
For practitioners in Singapore, we should continue to keep a vigil on Hand Foot Mouth Disease (HFMD), Dengue and chickenpox.
On top of vaccinating ourselves, we will need to continue good hygiene habits of hand washing, civil behaviors like mask wearing and avoiding crowded places when we are not well.
If we continue to be unwell after a day or two of rest, we should consult our own Family Physician.
For those of us belonging to the high risk groups such as chronic illnesses, airway diseases, muscular diseases and diseases affecting our immune system, it is important not to forget seasonsal flu vaccine and adult pneumococcal vaccine.
For practitioners in Singapore, we should continue to keep a vigil on Hand Foot Mouth Disease (HFMD), Dengue and chickenpox.
On top of vaccinating ourselves, we will need to continue good hygiene habits of hand washing, civil behaviors like mask wearing and avoiding crowded places when we are not well.
If we continue to be unwell after a day or two of rest, we should consult our own Family Physician.
Real Cost of H1N1 Vaccine in Singapore
Aren't we all curious about how a private GP group can offer the new H1N1 vaccinations at price lower than the polyclinics?
For us who are private solo GPs, there are fixed costs to delivering the H1N1 vaccines or any vaccines for the matter. In fact , we cannot even match polyclinic's price.
Assuming we vaccinate our patients at cost of $18 (with GST), we will need to charge our patients $53 per shot ($18 cost of vaccine +$10 practice cost +$25 consultation) to cover cost. This is assuming we are using the single dose pre-filled syringe.
If we were to use the multi dose vaccine, we will have to factor in wastage as the vaccine can only be kept for 24 hours after opening. Then the price would even be higher.
It would be interesting to find out how the group do it. Pay their nurses, doctors and assistants less than the staff at polyclinic? Have very low rental for their clinics? Or whatever methods unknown to all of us including our low cost polyclinic colleagues.
Maybe MOH should assign this group to be designated as the H1N1 vaccination provider and negotiate for a lower price of $20 per shot as they will have economy of scale! And leave the rest of us to continue our care for our usual patients in the private sector as well as polyclinics.
For us who are private solo GPs, there are fixed costs to delivering the H1N1 vaccines or any vaccines for the matter. In fact , we cannot even match polyclinic's price.
Assuming we vaccinate our patients at cost of $18 (with GST), we will need to charge our patients $53 per shot ($18 cost of vaccine +$10 practice cost +$25 consultation) to cover cost. This is assuming we are using the single dose pre-filled syringe.
If we were to use the multi dose vaccine, we will have to factor in wastage as the vaccine can only be kept for 24 hours after opening. Then the price would even be higher.
It would be interesting to find out how the group do it. Pay their nurses, doctors and assistants less than the staff at polyclinic? Have very low rental for their clinics? Or whatever methods unknown to all of us including our low cost polyclinic colleagues.
Maybe MOH should assign this group to be designated as the H1N1 vaccination provider and negotiate for a lower price of $20 per shot as they will have economy of scale! And leave the rest of us to continue our care for our usual patients in the private sector as well as polyclinics.
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