Bokamoso finances recovering - AFA

FREDERICK KEBADIRETSE
Staff Writer | Wednesday June 15, 2011 00:00

 

The Managing Director of Associated Fund Administrators (AFA), Rose Tatedi, told journalists at a press conference in Gaborone yesterday that the hospital has been able to meet all its costs - including paying employee salaries - without seeking assistance from BPOMAS as was the case before it was placed under provisional sequestration in January.

Tatedi took advantage of the press conference marking the 21st anniversary of AFA to give an update of the affairs of the hospital that is owned by Botswana Public Officers Medical Aid Scheme (BPOMAS) and Pula Medical Aid Fund. 

'BPOMAS, as the key contributor, was only asked to help the hospital financially until March, Tatedi said.  'Since then, the hospital has been sustainable and we hope it will continue like this into the future.' she said, before revealing that the High Court would review the provisional sequestration of the hospital by the end of this month.

Giving an overview of the hospital's woes, Tatedi blamed the business model Bokamoso employed. Instead of renting out space and equipment for doctors and specialists as most private hospitals do, Bokamoso had its doctors and specialists on its payroll at a time it hardly generated any money.

This resulted in staff retrenchments within less than a year of its operation when the hospital was almost driven aground by costs outweighing income, she said. Another factor in the downfall of the hospital was that while staff recruitment should have kept pace with patient volumes, Bokamoso hired a significant number of employees from the onset.  This resulted in escalating costs that the hospital could not meet with the little income it generated because of its small patient volumes.

'The hospital was not able to get referrals from local private practitioners as anticipated,' Tatedi said. 'Instead, patients continued to be referred out of the country, something that affected the anticipated patient volume.'

There was also the factor of some medical staff who had unresolved issues with their respective governing bodies being on the payroll of the hospital when they were not working.  Nonetheless, Tatedi defended the move to establish the hospital, saying AFA had successfully advised its clients regarding the establishment of Bokamoso.

AFA's Chief Operations Officer, Duncan Thela, concurred with Tatedi that things would fall in place at Bokamoso and that the hospital would serve the purpose for which it was established.  Thela said Bokamoso was established after a thorough feasibility study that showed a deficit of at least 400 beds at existing hospitals.  The problem, he noted, was with implementation of operations and the business model Bokamoso Hospital adopted.

Meanwhile, AFA will mark its 21st anniversary with a 21-km charity walk planned for July 9. Since its inception in 1990, AFA has focused largely on medical aid administration.  Its key clients are BPOMAS and Pula Medical Aid Fund.