Health services at Chapainawabganj Adhunik Sadar Hospital are badly hampered due to the shortage of doctors and other staff and lack of accommodation.

There are only 15 doctors against 36 posts at the 'full-fledged' 100-bed hospital meant for 16.50 lakh people of the district.

Important posts including those of 15 specialist doctors and a medical officer of ayurvedic and unani medicines are lying vacant for long.

At present there is no senior consultant at medicine, gynaecology and obstetrics, eye, neuron-

surgery, ENT, anaesthesia department and no junior consultants at surgery, medicine, cardiology, plastic surgery, orthopaedic surgery, ENT and pathology, said sources of the hospital.

The post of radiologist is also vacant.

Besides, second class posts of health superintendent, administrative officer, statistics officer, nursing supervisor and 48 third and fourth class posts are vacant.

Only four medical officers treat outdoor patients while three medical officers are working at the emergency department.

The hospital was upgraded to a 100-bed one from 50-bed capacity in

September 2006 without arranging adequate manpower, sources said.

There are allegations that doctors often idle away their time on different excuses although patients crowd in front of the doctors' chamber.

The consultants do not stay at their quarters in the hospital compound and so, emergency patients who come to the hospital in the afternoon or at night are often deprived of their services, hospital sources said.

During a visit to Chapainawabganj Adhunik Sadar Hospital on Sunday, this correspondent saw scores of patients lying on the floor of different wards.

Many patients were standing in long queues in front of doctors' chambers at the outdoor.

"Medical representatives often visit doctors during duty hours. 1 came here at 9:00am but failed to visit any doctor till now 11:00pm]," said a patient from Kalinagar of Sadar upazila.

Many other patients and their attendants made similar allegations.

Israil Hossain of LIpara Rajarampur in the town went to hospital for ear treatment of his daughter, but they returned frustrated as there is no ENT doctor.

A medical officer of the hospital said they have to serve 300 to 400 outdoor patients daily while 200 to 300 indoor patients stay at different wards of the 100-bed hospital.

Contacted, Civil Surgeon Dr Md Alauddin said, "We sent several letters to the higher authorities concerned asking for steps to fill up the vacant posts at Chapainawabganj Sadar Hospital but to no effect yet."

Visiting the hospital on December 23 last year, Health Minister Mohammad Nasim assured taking steps to fill the vacant posts and supplying necessary machines and equipment for the hospital, he added.

Meanwhile, work for upgrading the hospital to a 250-bed one at a cost of Tk 28 crore started in November last year, said sources.