Contents
Małgorzata Halber recently revealed that she was returned to a psychiatric hospital. She chose private, because although she pays “horrendous money” for it, it provides much better care than she had previously experienced in a state hospital. What does “horrendous money” mean? We checked how much it costs to stay in a private psychiatric hospital, as well as other hospitals.
- Małgorzata Halber: In a private hospital, a psychiatrist talks to me every day for at least half an hour, a psychologist talks to me four times a week, and a nurse is always available. I pay horrendous money for it
- According to official price lists of private psychiatric hospitals, a two-week stay in such a facility is an expense of around 10 thousand. zloty
- The cost of staying in private hospitals, not only psychiatric ones, is often determined individually
- You have to pay up to one thousand zlotys for a day of stay in a ward in such facilities
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
Małgorzata Halber: I pay horrendous money for good care
Małgorzata Halber wrote a few days ago that she was sent to a psychiatric hospital. She is a 43-year-old journalist, writer and cartoonist. In the 90s, she was one of the presenters in the “5-10-15” program. In 2015, she published the book “The worst man in the world” about alcohol addiction. A few years ago, she confessed to alcohol and drug addiction.
«So it happened. After a month and a half of wrestling with whether I was able to get up or not, lying with the curtains drawn, and an absolute festival of self-hatred, I went to a mental hospital. Private »- she wrote on FB.
Halber wanted to choose a state hospital (“I want real people from normal society. Cause getting out of the bubble is healthy”), but at the urging of her psychiatrist she decided to go private. She also wrote about previous experiences with such a facility.
“Within a month, I was selected drugs, thanks to which I functioned very well, in gradually reduced doses, until February” – she wrote, exchanging at the same time, for which she pays “horrendous (even with my higher than median earnings) money”. This includes daily consultations with a psychiatrist, four talks a week with a psychologist, twice group or occupational therapy, a room with a bathroom.
The standard of care in a private hospital is compared to that of a public facility. «In a state-run hospital, I was lying on a mattress in the corridor of the cafeteria between the treatment room and the smoking room. The celebration was just like I mentioned before: the doctor asked me in the presence of 10 interns how you are doing today, made an appointment and went on. I may not even mention a psychologist«.
Finally, Halber emphasizes that what she had provided in a private hospital should also be the norm for patients treated at the National Health Fund, and not “something available to a select few rich people”,
What does a stay in a psychiatric hospital look like?
Małgorzata Halber wrote that she pays horrendous money for a stay in a psychiatric hospital. How such a stay looks in practice, says Marek Kubicki, member of the management board of the Mazowiecki Hospital of Mind Health, in an interview with Medonet.
Medonet: How much does it cost to stay in your psychiatric hospital? What is the daily cost and how long does such a stay last?
Marek Kubicki: Stays in our Masovian Mind Health Hospital in the general psychiatric ward last from 7 to 28 days, while in the addiction psychotherapy ward – 30 days. Prices per night depend on the type of package and the room in which the patient is staying.
It is worth noting that in our psychiatric hospital we have started a pioneering project that shortens the hospitalization time to two weeks. Of course, this does not apply to all patients, but it turns out that it is possible to diagnose the patient in such a short time and implement appropriate treatment, so that it is possible to continue treatment on an outpatient basis. The main difference lies in the involvement of the entire team of specialists caring for the patient to work at the same time. This group includes doctors, psychologists, psychotherapists, nurses and paramedics. These people see the patient all day long, in various activities. The work of the entire team minimizes the risk of error, and proper treatment depends on the correct diagnosis.
How long is waiting for the party? Who can become a patient in such a hospital?
The waiting time for admission usually does not last longer than a few days, and in urgent situations, we try to see the patient on the same day after telephone qualification.
We only accept adults to our hospital. In the general psychiatric ward, we treat people who have mental problems and require diagnosis or treatment in a hospital. On the other hand, in the addiction psychotherapy (therapeutic) ward, we help people who have problems with addiction and decide to participate in a therapeutic program lasting several weeks.
What can patients in hospital count on?
Our hospital is located in Warsaw’s Białołęka district, surrounded by greenery, in a very quiet area, it provides intimate stays in single or double rooms with bathrooms.
We provide round-the-clock medical and nursing care along with a program of various group activities of a therapeutic nature. What’s more, our patients receive individual consultations with experienced clinical psychologists, comprehensive diagnostics allowing for the diagnosis and implementation of appropriate treatment, and the possibility of performing complementary diagnostic tests and specialist consultations.
It is also worth emphasizing that the comfortable conditions of stay in our hospital also offer far-reaching discretion and intimacy throughout the entire hospitalization period. Treatment is open-ended. This means that our patients have the right to leave the hospital, e.g. short trips outside the hospital, shopping in a local store, which gives them additional comfort of therapy.
Prices in private psychiatric hospitals
We also checked the available price lists in several other private psychiatric hospitals in Poland.
Gedeon Medica Therapy Centers in Piaseczno are medical facilities that deal with XNUMX-hour treatment of depression, eating disorders, anxiety disorders and personality disorders. One week of stay (depending on the diet: regular, vegetarian, vegan) costs 5,5-6,2 thousand. Two weeks cost 9,5-10.5 thousand.
A 4-week stay (within which the center provides 126 hours of therapy, constant medical care, 14-hour nursing care, meals and accommodation) costs PLN 14,9 – XNUMX thousand. PLN, depending on the agreed diet.
Mood drops, malaise? Maybe it is worth doing laboratory tests for depression? You will find them in Medonet Market.
Inventiva Clinic – Private Psychiatric Clinic z Tuszyna specializes in the treatment of alcohol, drug and drug addiction, and we provide extensive psychiatric care to people suffering from depression, neurosis and schizophrenia.
The psychiatric treatment package lasts 28 days. The cost is 9,9-12 thousand. depending on the standard of the room. However, as the clinic points out, “you only pay for the first 10-11 days, the rest are free”. The price per night without the package is 1,3-1,7 thousand. zloty.
Private hospitals are generally very expensive
It should be noted, however, that staying in any private, not only psychiatric, hospital is not a cheap matter. The final cost is usually determined individually, it depends on the length of stay, the number of treatments, examinations and consultations.
From publicly available price lists, we can find out that at the St. Elżbieta belonging to the LuxMed Group one night in a single room costs PLN 1550, in a multi-bed room – PLN 1000.
On the Medicover Hospital website, you can see the prices for stays of up to 24 hours. They are – for single rooms – from 2 thousand. (surgery, gynecology) up to 2,3 thousand (cardiology). In the case of double rooms, the minimum price is PLN 1.
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time we devote it to ecology. How to be eco and not go crazy? How can we care for our planet on a daily basis? What and how to eat? You will hear about this and many other topics related to ecology in the new episode of our podcast.