For quite some time, a 48-year-old woman working at an acupuncture clinic in Mumbai had been troubled by wrinkles and sagging muscles. Last year, she decided to address these concerns and sought a facelift at the government-run JJ Hospital. The procedure cost her Rs 950, a stark contrast to the Rs 1.5 lakh she would have incurred at a private hospital for a similar treatment.
Expressing her desire to look good, she stated, “If I can eliminate my wrinkles for Rs 950, why not?” While government hospitals in Mumbai traditionally focused on trauma-related constructive surgeries, such as those for burns and accidents, there has been a noticeable uptick in individuals approaching facilities like JJ Hospital, KEM, Sion, and Nair Hospital (run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), for affordable cosmetic surgeries. These procedures range from common ones like rhinoplasty and liposuction to more intricate surgeries like hair transplants, breast implants, and penis enlargement.
Typically associated with the affluent, these surgical procedures at government hospitals come at a fraction of the cost compared to private counterparts. For instance, a facelift at JJ Hospital costs Rs 950, while at BMC tertiary-care hospitals, it goes up to Rs 2,500, significantly lower than the starting point of Rs 1 lakh at private hospitals.
A 48-year-old acupuncturist shared her experience, noting that along with post-surgery care, the total expenses at JJ Hospital were around Rs 30 a day for a bed, whereas a private hospital would have charged Rs 2.5 lakh.
Data from 2016 to 2021 reveals that JJ Hospital alone conducted numerous cosmetic procedures, including liposuction, rhinoplasty, breast reduction, cosmetic breast implant, hair transplants, and penis enlargement. The demand for such procedures has been on the rise, with the pandemic-induced delay in elective surgeries gradually subsiding.
Doctors at these government hospitals emphasized the affordability of their procedures, attracting patients who would otherwise be unable to bear the costs at private facilities. Cosmetic procedures, excluded from medical insurance coverage, prompt individuals to turn to reputable plastic surgeons in government hospitals for cost-effective solutions.
Patients attested to the success rates of these civic hospitals, with one woman highlighting her breast reduction at KEM hospital in 2016 for Rs 2,000, a procedure that would have cost significantly more in private establishments. The head of the plastic surgery department at KEM acknowledged the growing confidence of patients in seeking elective cosmetic surgeries at government hospitals.
While there is a steady increase in such elective cosmetic surgeries, doctors clarified that the majority of cases they handle are still trauma-related constructive procedures. Between 2019 and 2021, KEM conducted 1,933 reconstructive surgeries, JJ Hospital 1,555, and Nair Hospital 1,897.
