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Sorry state of a Khulna hospital

Crumbling building, manpower shortage plague Chest Disease Hospital
DIPANKAR ROY
A lack of proper supervision and renovation has left the 58-year-old Khulna Chest Disease Hospital in a sorry state.
The institution serves as the only reliable treatment centre for tuberculosis patients, especially drug-resistant tuberculosis, in 21 districts of the region.
Despite its reputation, admitted patients are always in a state of fear due to the dilapidated condition of the hospital building. Often, one-third of the beds remain vacant, as many patients do not venture to get admitted there.
Its walls lay cracked and half of the pillars have collapsed. When it rains, water falls through the roof into the ward. The plaster of the walls and roof of the building has fallen and iron rods are visibly sticking out.
Almost all toilets designated for patients are unusable.
However, only a few rounds of regular renovations have been carried out over a long period of time.
Partha Biswas, a medical officer at the hospital, said various NGOs are providing free medical care to TB patients in remote areas. Because of that, the number of TB patients has decreased. Additionally, a patient crisis has been ongoing since Covid-19.
“However, the dilapidated building poses a threat to everyone and many patients leave in fear of accidents,” he added.
Md Abdur Rahman of Manjidpur of Paikgacha Sadar union in Khulna said, “I was admitted here last year. I returned again last month for treatment. But lying in the hospital bed and looking at the ceiling, my chest shuddered.”
Sheikh Dildar of Mongla upazila in Bagerhat has been receiving treatment for several months on the bed next to Abdur Rahman.
“I am already sick... But the condition of the hospital makes me panic more,” he said.
According to available data, 297 patients were admitted between January and July of this year. However, data from 2022 showed that 300 patients visited the facilities every month.
While doctors and nurses serve at this 100-bed hospital amid the risk, there is an ongoing crisis of manpower. Surgeries at the hospital have been shut down for two years due to a lack of specialist doctors.
Out of the 11 posts available for doctors, five positions -- including two specialists -- are vacant. The hospital does not have any doctors for pathology and radiology. Similarly, 16 out of 25 posts for office assistants and 12 out of 15 posts for cleaners are also vacant.
While other public hospitals in Khulna are overcrowded with patients, KCDH is only at one-third of its capacity. This shows the present condition of government hospitals, said Sheikh Baharul Alom, president of Bangladesh Medical Association, Khulna.
Contacted, Prodip Chandra Mondal, superintendent of the hospital, said the condition of the hospital buildings has reached an alarming level and the authorities should have looked into this earlier.
The Public Works Department has put two proposals, forward earlier this year, for the reconstruction of dilapidated buildings and abandoned residential buildings, he said.
“They have already visited the hospital. They said it is no longer repairable and it has to be rebuilt,” he added.