Rs. 7,500 admission fee essential to maintain services at Seeduwa

By Ananda Nissanka

Vijaya Kumaratunga Memorial Hospital has resumed eye operations and other surgical procedures that had been suspended for two weeks to undergo building renovations.

The suspension was due to an intermittent discovery of fungi on the hospital walls over the past three years. The renovation, costing Rs 5.5 million, aims to provide a permanent solution to this issue, with Rs 3 million personally contributed by the Acting Chairman of the hospital, Neil Umagiliya, for tiling work.

The hospital, inaugurated by former President Chandrika Kumaratunga in October 1999 in memory of her husband, veteran cinema artist and politician Vijaya Kumaratunga, has become a vital facility in Seeduwa. It has restored sight to many individuals through lens replacement surgery. Umagiliya has announced plans to expand the hospital’s capacity, aiming to conduct between 6,000 and 9,000 surgeries annually in the coming years.

Under the Health Ministry, the hospital has become the only facility, apart from the Eye Hospital in Colombo, capable of performing complex eye surgery. Despite many patients being able to afford eye surgery, they seek these services free of charge.

However, maintaining entirely free surgical services is challenging. The hospital charges an admission fee of Rs 7,500 per patient. This has attracted criticism. Umagiliya clarified that this fee would not be necessary if the hospital received adequate support from the government in terms of medicine and logistics.

An organized group has been spreading false information, misleading people into believing the fee is unreasonable. Charging this fee has become essential to maintain the quality of the hospital’s services as the government only covers employee salaries, electricity, water bills, vehicle maintenance, and allocates a minimal amount for medicine, insufficient to cover all necessary medication, he said.

“Our goal is not to turn this hospital into a profit-earning venture; we aim to maintain the quality of our services,” said Umagiliya. The hospital provides free treatment to low-income patients and kidney patients, covering everything from lenses to medicine.

Currently, the hospital has a medical staff of 20, including five specialists, 85 nursing staff, 13 paramedics, and 65 health assistants. It is managed by a board of directors, with Dr. Gayan Anuradha Ranaweera serving as the Acting Director.

Dr. Ranaweera noted that the hospital spends approximately Rs 160 million annually on purchasing medicine from outside. While lens replacement surgery at private hospitals range from Rs 140,000 to Rs 300,000, the same procedures cost around Rs 40,000 at this hospital. Plans are also underway to establish special units for treating kidney and diabetes patients, he said.

Dr. Ranaweera highlighted that the hospital’s endoscopic machine, used for diagnostics, is currently broken and would cost around Rs 4.5 million to repair. The machine, initially donated by a philanthropic businessman at a cost of approximately Rs 40 million, is crucial for diagnostics. Instead of making unfounded accusations, critics could help by organizing efforts to provide a new endoscopic machine.

Eye Surgeon Chamara Kumarage, along with his colleague Dr. Jayan de Silva, emphasized their dedication to helping patients regain their eyesight. Unlike many government hospitals where eye patients face long waits and multiple visits, the maximum waiting time at this hospital is two months, even during peak intake.

The hospital’s current government funding is insufficient to cover expenses. “We are not a profit-earning hospital; our top priority is to treat people,” said Kumarage.

The hospital treats around 6,000 vitrectomy cases and approximately 800 cornea patients with diabetes each year, procedures that many hospitals avoid due to high costs. Additionally, the hospital provides treatment for kidney patients and children with eye defects.