Pervez Mughal
A hospital is one of the most important installations at any place. It is required to be all time fully equipped and adequately staffed. But the ground reality, on the contrary, is quite disheartening. All the hospitals of suburban districts of the state in general and that of Poonch in particular are undergoing many difficulties creating further problems for the patients. The medical staff at the moment in District Hospital Poonch is far below the adequate and the facilities are also less than sufficient. We are hats off to the guts and competence of the little medical staff available there for they are all time ready to do their best for the people but simply guts and competence can’t do the needful. The Chief Medical Officer of Poonch has communicated all these problems to the higher authorities and tried to open the eyes of the Government, but all ended in a smoke. At the moment most of the important posts of specialists have been lying vacant since long but the government has never bothered about it. The tragic absence of Ortho-specialist, ENT specialist, Pathilogist, Dental Surgeon, B-Grade Anesthesia, B-Grade Dentistry, B-Grade ENT Specialist, B-Grade gynecologist, B-Grade Pediatric, B-Grade Pathologist, B-Grade Surgeon Specialist, B-Grade Ophthalmology, Blood Bank Officer, Unani Medical Officer, has created a great threat to the life of the patients.
The Hospital has almost been transformed into a hub of nuisance where none cares for anybody at all. To make the matters worse, there is not even adequate availability of Paramedical staff in the hospital. The post of matron and Assistant Matron are lying vacant in the hospital. One post of Nursing Supervisor; 16 posts of senior staff nurses; 11 posts of Junior Staff Nurses, 08 post of Junior Pharmacists; 01 post of Junior theatre Technician; 02 posts of Lab Technician; 02 post of Lab Boy; 01 post of X Ray Technician; 01 post of X-Ray boy; 01 post of Dental Boy; 01 post of senior Physiotherapist; 03 posts of Sanitary Inspector; 02 posts of Electrician; 01 post of Plumber; 03 posts of ECG Technician; 01 post of Chowkidar; 01 post of Dhobi; 02 posts of Gardener; 05 Posts Nursing of orderly; 06 posts of Attendant (Class IV); 01 post of Ward Boy; and 01 post of Junior Staff Nurse (Under NRHM) have been lying vacant for the last over many years together. It is the matter of great anguish that despite this serious paucity of instantly important staff, the department concerned in particular and the government in general has never paid even an iota of attention to this side. Once the doctor is transferred, he is not replaced by any substitute.
Those who are posted from our outside to DH Poonch don’t join and in connivance with people in the system get their transfers modified. It is more than enough to leave the senses of your office paralysed that a more than century old hospital is functioning on the shoulders of less than 40% staff. Out of 156 posts, about 100 positions are vacant. The question is whether it possible to cater to the requirement of the district on the coat tails of this scanty staff. It is requested that the vacancies of the hospital may please be filled up as early as possible.
Most of the patients are so poor that they can’t afford treatment outside Poonch but it has been found that due to the absence of required staff and for want of required facilities these poor patients, even for ordinary treatment, are referred to JMC or SKIMS. And the result is always fatal since such poor patients neither get treatment here in local hospital nor can they meet the expenditure for the treatment outside. A hospital is decidedly a vital pillar of the society. What is the most disturbing is that there are a large a large number of vacancies in district Hospital Poonch and as many as two-thirds of sanctioned posts of medical and para-medical staff have to be filled up. But the Govt. of state in general and the department concerned in particular seem to take this serious issue very casually.
At the same time the doctors or the other medical staff being insufficient is weighed down with a huge backlog of patients every day and as treatment in time is denied to most of the patients especially who are extremely poor and hail from very far-flung corners of Poonch. Normally a doctor has to deal with 50 or 60 patients a day but here in Poonch District Hospital the scenario is very alarming and disheartening. One doctor has to diagnose about 150 or more cases every day and at the end of the day a doctor needs to have another doctor to keep him in right frame of health. No doubt the vacancies in the hospital have badly damaged the successful functioning of the medical department of this district and have pushed thousands of poor patients into a great trouble.
The endless delay in delivering adequate treatment to the patients diminishes people’s respect for the government and the medical department. It follows that staff vacancies need to be filled up with the utmost urgency. It should be done at all levels in general and in Poonch district hospital in particular on war-footing. The commendable job is done by the doctors and other allied staff in the hospital but the shortage of staff is to be considered seriously and compensated as early as possible. The people of poonch have a lot of expectation from the Govt. and we strongly believe a stern action shall be initiated in this matter.
(The author is General Secretary Awake India, Poonch)
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