Long waits, limited care

Patients at the Bahubal Upazila Health Complex in Habiganj are being forced to wait hours for treatment amid a shortage of doctors, nurses and essential medicines, rendering the hospital increasingly dysfunctional.

Sadekur Rahman, 55, a resident of the Mirpur area, said they had arrived at 10:30am, but no doctor attended to them till 1:00pm.

Sabanur Rahman, who came from Rashidpur, echoed him.

With a population of nearly 1.98 lakh under its jurisdiction, the health complex appears to be more ill than the patients it serves, alleged locals.

According to hospital sources, against 20 sanctioned doctor posts, only six personnel are currently employed, while 14 positions remain vacant.

In 2016, the hospital was upgraded from a 31-bed to a 50-bed facility. However, the required staffing for such an upgrade has not been fulfilled.

Patients admitted to the wards are being deprived of proper care due to the absence of specialised doctors. Complicated cases are regularly referred to other hospitals. Caesarean services, introduced briefly, were shut down within four months following the transfer of the gynaecologist.

Dr Mizanur Rahman Shahin, one of the two doctors providing outdoor services, said they are on duty almost 48 hours at a stretch. As the hospital is located near the highway, accident victims are also brought there, he said.

Dr Abdullahel Maruf Farooqui, upazila health and family planning officer, said he was posted there a month ago.

There are only six doctors out of 20, and three junior consultants out of four who only see special patients, while one is doing desk work. As a result, only two regular doctors attend to general patients, one of whom is on assignment from another place and could leave at any time.

"We have submitted a demand letter to the higher authorities to fill the vacancies. We are trying our best to provide medical services with limited manpower," he added.

Contacted, Dr Ratnadip Biswas, civil surgeon of Habiganj, said they have informed the higher authorities about the crisis. "Efforts to resolve the overall manpower shortages are ongoing," he said.