BHF360° | DECEMBER 2021
BHF360° | DECEMBER 2021
INSIDE HE A LT H C A RE
afford traditional medical scheme contributions. Medical scheme coverage and benefit richness is generally correlated with income; therefore the higher the premium, the richer the benefits. Low-cost benefit options (LCBOs) will automatically bring more people into the private healthcare system and, in the process, will create opportunities for buy-ups when their financial situation improves. However, many low-income earners not only experience affordability issues. A large portion experience barriers to access, with many having to travel far and incur transport costs when they need medical assistance. We have to make healthcare smarter. We have to provide an affordable solution through LCBOs and combine that with an easy way for low-income earners to access high-quality private medical care when needed. The reality is that primary care medical professionals are a scarce resource, and we need to change the fundamental paradigm by asking how to make this scarce resource equitable and easily accessible to the population. Medshield’s SmartCare nurse-led GP consultations, as a benefit on the proposed LCBO solution, will provide greater access since patients don’t need a GP to be physically present. All that is needed is a pharmacy or clinic, a data-enabled mobile device and a nurse. The nurse will assess the patient’s vital signs, temperature and the like, and conduct a video-led call with the doctor, who could then diagnose and provide treatment.
Thoneshan Naidoo Principal Officer, Medshield Medical Scheme
The private healthcare industry is often characterised as the domain of 8.9 million medical scheme members (15% of the population). However, based on Stats SA’s 2017 General Household Survey and UCT’s 2014 National Income Dynamics Survey, between 16 million and 23 million South Africans access private healthcare as the first port of call on a cash basis. Providing a more structured solution will not only provide access to healthcare but will alleviate long-term undiagnosed medical conditions, which could result in severe diseases later
in life. A LCBO, offering a combination of face-to-face consultations and the use of technological innovations, is the smart solution for the existing healthcare needs of low-income earners in South Africa. In the current economy, the need to introduce LBCOs and enable access to quality private healthcare in a sustainable and affordable manner is arguably greater than in prior years. Reference 1. Swift R. The relationship between health and GDP in OECD countries in the very long run. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20217835/
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