Royal Bhutanese Consulate, Kolkata Just another WordPress site
The Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) has been providing free health care to all its citizens since the inception of both traditional and allopathic medicine in Bhutan. The RGoB refers patients outside Bhutan requiring superspeciality treatment and majority of the patients are referred to Kolkata from Bhutan. The Royal Bhutanese Consulate General facilitates and extends services to Bhutanese nationals travelling to Kolkata to avail medical services. Towards this end, the Royal Bhutanese Consulate, Kolkata has three Health Attachés helping Bhutanese patients and escorts. Bhutanese were referred to avail better medical services in Kolkata from as early as 1970s. All expenses for the treatment including airfare and Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) for both patient and escort are borne by the Royal Government of Bhutan. There are ten hospitals that are empanelled by the RGoB to provide medical services to Bhutanese patients referred from Bhutan. On an average, yearly total expenditure for the patients referred to Kolkata stands at Nu.128 to 130 million.
Procurement of the Named Patient Drugs form a very important part for the continued care of the patients referred to Kolkata. After discharge most of these patients are put on medication for life. Since these medicines are not available in the Essential Drugs List, they are procured in small quantities on a named patient basis.
Prior to Covid-19 pandemic, medicines were procured by the Royal Bhutanese Consulate General office through open tender and dispatched to Bhutan by flight on a weekly basis. However due to the pandemic, flight schedules have been irregular due to which most medicines are now sent via land. The Consulate also procures VVIP drugs which are dispatched to Bhutan. Additional Essential Drugs and Non-Drugs for both Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital and Medical Supply Procurement Division are procured from time to time by the Consulate and dispatched together with the Named Patient Drugs. The payments for these are made by the RGoB as soon as the consignments are received.