From: yaser@uxh.cso.uiuc.edu (Ala)
Subject: Re: Iranian surgeons carry out low-cost heart transplant
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Fri, 25 Dec 1992 21:16:35 GMT

anoosh@mips.com (Anoosh Hosseini) writes:

>In article <1992Dec25.135324.2387@thunder.mcrcim.mcgill.edu> hamid@McRCIM.McGill.EDU (Hamio Reza Mohammadi Daniali) writes:
>>
>>In article <1992Dec24.180907.15588@CSD-NewsHost.Stanford.EDU>, farzin@apollo3.ntt.jp (Farzin Mokhtarian) writes:
>>|> 
>>|>                      >|> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>>|> From: Japan Times, December 24, 1992
>>|>                  
>>|> Iranian surgeons carry out low-cost heart transplant
>>|>                  
>>|> Sanjarian said the operation cost 250 million rials ($170,000)
>>|> in other countries but only five million rials ($3,400) in
>>|> Shiraz University's Namazi Hospital.
>>|>         

>Farzin jon, you forgot to factor in exchange rates.  Please don't give
>the foreigners the idea that they should rush to Iran for their 
>heart transplants. We have shortages of all forms medical resources.  
>The lower cost of the operations may be to due these factors;

>1- Iranian government funding of equipment, charging 70 rials/Dollar rather
>   than 1400R/Dollar which you are using to compare. Thus if you 
>   need pacemaker (which is  imported) and you wait your turn, it would be
>   cheaper to do it Iran, relative to the same operation which
>   you had to pay 1400R/Dollar abroad. (20X factor)

>2- Lower hospital cost due to lower labor costs.

>3- Lower doctor salaries.  You can consult a cardiac surgeon  for 1000-2000
>   Rials ($2.00 at the float rate).

>4- Doctors who operate for nominal fee at University hospitals.   (for 
>   humanitarian reasons ) Government pays for all hospital costs. 
>   This program is for the very poor.

>5- Medical equipment is reused several times in Iran (after proper
>   sterilization), while in the US, they are used only once. The latter
>   may be to reduce risk, plus safer for law suits.
					  ~~~~~~~~~
This may be a key factor.
Doctors in Iran can perform their duties without the fear of being suied (sp?)
The advantage of this is that they can be more innovative 
the disadvantage is skipping many precausionary measures to reduce
the risk.  This results in lower cost in terms of $ but higher cost
to the paitient.  The success rate of the operations can tell a lot about this.

There is no problem in selling our medical services to abroad so long as
the government does not interfere in the process.  They have started
selling government owned hospitals to the private sector but this has
increased the cost by a large factor.  I met my uncle who said one of
his relatives paid 500,000 toomans just to be admitted to a Tehran's
hospital for heart attck care.  The total bill was around 750 K toomaan!

There is no reason why our physicians should not be allowed to admit
patients from all over the world.  This would first result in attracting
Iranian doctors from abroad and also boosting the Iranian medical prestigue.
These doctors will also be involved in medical education and thus we may
not need to send our doctors to abroad for specialization which will
result in their loss! (of course not in all cases).

Again, this is a good idea as long as the limited medical services
are not furthur reduced for servicing foreigners who may pay more $.


>All that said the transplant is still a great accomplishment for Iran
>and Iranians, but nothing to do with the Revolution. 

>>|> Iranian doctors have been performing kidney transplants for
>>|> several years
>>
>>Iranian surgeons performed 2000 kidney transplants after the revolution 
>>which 90% of them have been successful.The total of kidney transplants before 
>>the revolution was only 100. Dr. Basiree a kidney surgeon at Shahid Beheshti Univ.
>>pointed out during a conference in Tehran.
>>

>Before the Revolution there were no PC's in Iran, after Revolution there
>were thousands. Thus the Shah was against Iranian having computers.

>For a kidney transplant, one needs a donor. Thus we may say that
>many more Iranians past away after the Revolution.  Others sold one of
>theirs to survive the high cost of living.  Some died trying 
>doing the latter.

>Its easy to play with data.


>>|>                          
>>|> Farzin
>> 
>>Hamid

>-anoosh
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