Shanghai's health authorities ordered a private hospital to stop
distributing a card yesterday, which promised to pay cabdrivers up
to 300 yuan (US$37) for each emergency patient they drove to the
hospital.
The Xijiao bone disease hospital started to distribute the card
among Shanghai's taxi drivers December 26, which promised 50 yuan
in reward for each outpatient and 300 yuan for each inpatient they
took to the hospital.
Gu Mingjun, head of the hospital, said the move was to encourage
the the traditional Chinese virtue of extending a helping hand
during an emergency. But some suspect the cash reward was a bait
for bringing more clients.
A previous survey found that many cab drivers were unwilling to
take emergency patients to hospitals, out of a fear that the
patients' families would hold them liable for the accidents, the
Oriental Morning Post said.
The hospital received three outpatients brought by cabdrivers
since the practice was started. A driver who had brought a patient
said he did it just to help. "We had many clients waiting during
the New Year holidays and many drivers were unwilling to carry
patients who cannot move themselves," he said.
The health authorities said Shanghai has an efficient first-aid
network. The private hospital, which specialized in bone diseases,
might not have been the best choice for patients with serious organ
damage, and even cost them their lives if precious time was wasted,
the health bureau said.
(Shenzhen Daily January 5, 2006)