NHIMA advises accredited facilities on patient care

The National Health Insurance Management Authority (NHIMA) has stated that it will not condone accredited facilities that turn away patients.

NHIMA Director General, Michael Njapau, says it is wrong for any health facility accredited with NHIMA to chase patients away.

Speaking on Hot FM’s breakfast show and monitored by the media, Mr Njapau said the authority is aware of some facilities that are not treating patients properly.

He charged that some facilities are sending away patients due to delays by the authority in paying claims and wondered why patients were being sent away without notifying NHIMA.

“We have also found that some facilities are not treating our patients properly, they are sending them away because of some delays without telling us,” he stated.

Mr Njapau further explained that the contracts signed between NHIMA and health facilities stipulate that any changes or adjustments must be communicated to the authority.

“The contract stipulates that they should tell us in case of any changes,” he stressed.

Mr Njapau noted that NHIMA operates an open-door policy, adding that any facility facing challenges should contact the authority rather than turn away patients.

“This is a business relationship, if the facility is having difficulties with NHIMA we run an open door policy. We should be contacted, and say we can’t go on like this, can we make adjustments and everything is transparent,” he said.

Mr Njapau said it is wrong for a NHIMA accredited facility to send away a patient instead of attending to them, stating that the move is not right by any standards.

“I can’t imagine a patient who is not feeling well, get to a hospital which is accredited with NHIMA and then they are sent away, this is not right by any standards,” he said.

And, Mr Njapau has refuted claims that the authority has reduced the services offered under NHIMA scheme.

“As far as NHIMA is concerned, no services have been removed. We have not reduced the number of services as far as NHIMA is concerned,” he stressed.

Mr Njapau appealed to the public to report any facility claiming that NHIMA has reduced services offered to the Zambian people to the authority.

He said NHIMA is ready to send its inspectors to visit facilities alleging that services have been removed by the authority.

“We are please appealing to the public, those facilities that tell you we have reduced let us know, we will get to them and check why and what facilities had reduced,” said Mr Njapau.

He further emphasised that each time NHIMA desires to make adjustments, the public is notified through the press.

“We have never reduced any facilities, when NHIMA has reduced any facilities, we inform the public and we will go to the press and make announcements, give notice of which facilities have been reduced,” Mr Njapau stated.

He pointed out that as a public institution dealing with human lives, NHIMA takes its responsibilities seriously.