Bandipora: While patients decry impediments in benefitting a better health care for various reasons including callous approach of the doctors, non-availability of medicines, pushing patients to go to private clinics and rampant referals, the district hospital Bandipora in main town of the district is officially a ‘mess’.
The officials however have their own set of reasons to say as to why the hospital is not in a good conditions. Patients however are taking the toll.
Among the various accusations is favoritism and nepotism, which many believe is rotting the system from inside and has badly hit the patient care in district hospital Bandipora, and claims that ‘referrals are being done even for minor injuries’.
Not only are the patients visiting the hospital angry over the callos work culture they also accuse that the hospital has shortage of medicine and better medical infrastructure.
“Limited number of prioritised patients are adding woes to majority of visitors,” some of the patients and their attendants told INS.
One official at the hospital, wishing to be anonymous, said that ‘higher officials recommend concerned medicos to see their kith and kin within no time thereby adding woes’.
“Those who don’t have ‘approach’ are being left to lurch for want of medicare,” he claimed.
A patient confided that ‘patients with poor background are attended as if they don’t matter’ and if you are known and have a powerfull recomenation you are the first to go to doctor.
“Even if it makes patients waiting for hours be irritated, babus can jump the queue,” he said.
Another problem that has hit the hospital, some of the insiders claimed, was that the doctors prefer private practice and are very ‘fond of referals’ that to save time and rush to ‘private clinics’.
“One has to buy every medicine from the open market and every time a casual response of official will greet you. ‘Get this medicine from market’. Where is the hospital supply or if it is, where is it,” an angry patient rued.
They said that ‘the trick has worked and visiting a doctor at hospital is never the first thing they think’.
“You always now first check which clinic is the doctor available at, they have successfully pushed us to wall. Where will the poor go,” they asked.
When faced with the questions Block Medical Officer Bandipora, Dr Syed Rehman, claimed that the ‘mess is due to lack of space in hospital and non-creation of staff’.
He claims despite such a condition they are catering around 3 Lac population.
“Replacement of doctors has not been done after transfer of several Doctors, which causing inconvenience,” he claimed.
Rehmad said that even though they have procured Endoscopy and Laproscopic machines, they lack surgeons.
He however did not accept that that favoritism and nepotism is rotting the system in hospital.
“We are trying our level best to ensure batter patient Care,” Rehman said.
