Agartala, Jul 19, 2022, TRIPURATIMES Desk

Agartala, July 19: The Dedicated Covid Hospital, functioning in the state's prime referral healthcare facility- AGMC and GBP hospital, is struggling with several shortcomings including acute shortage of skilled staff.

Call it poor management or sheer negligence on the part of the authority, the patients admitted in the Dedicated Covid Hospital are experiencing something very bad in terms of service.

A patient, who was admitted with fever and cough along with severe weakness in the ward no-7, alleged that an attending medical officer had given requisition for X-ray on Sunday (July 17) night but it was not done till Monday midnight for an unknown reason.

When a person accompanying the patient reminded the available medical staff for completing the X-ray on Monday morning (around 10.30 am), he was first assured that it would be performed within a short time. However, time passed till midnight but nobody was there to give any response.

A junior medical officer on duty then replied the patient party that the technical staff for X-ray in the set up for Covid-infected persons was not available. In the mean time, CT scan was done at about 11.30 pm.

When asked about the next possible time, the doctor said that the X-ray would be conducted after 5 pm of Tuesday. But on Tuesday morning, another doctor came and said X-ray was not required since the CT scan was already done. The doctor also advised discharge from the hospital. But, soon after the doctor's visit, the patient was informed that he would be taken for X-ray and finally, it was conducted a few minutes later.

A doctor had advised sugar test for the same patient based on medical history. Subsequently, a health staff had collected the first blood sample (fasting) at about 8 am on Monday morning.

The patient was told that the second sample of his blood would be collected after two hours (after meal). But none of the medical staff was available in the ward for collecting blood despite repeated reminders after two hours. Finally, the second blood sample was collected almost after four hours.

These were two examples of the poor service. Apart from that, there is dearth of stretchers or wheel chairs and helper for movement of aged Covid patients.

Meanwhile, the issues was brought to the notice of the Medical Superintendent of GB Hospital on Monday night. He assured the patient party that the issues would be addressed with topmost priority and he did so following which a change in the functioning of the medical staff was noticed since Tuesday morning.
Finally, the Covid patient was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday (Day 5) afternoon after his nasal swab (same) was collected for RTPCR test.

In case of hospitalization, almost all the aged patients come with severe weakness (including refer cases). In this matter, if an aged person accompanies an elder to the hospital, he/she faces difficulties in the movement of the patients due to the non-availability of adequate stretchers or wheelchairs.

Besides, senior doctors are hardly seen, there is no adequate drinking water facility and all the ceiling fans do not work properly in the Covid ward.

The number of hospitalization cases is low now but still, the shortcomings are leading to huge suffering. If the patients flow increases in the next few days, the hospital service will definitely hit the headlines for very wrong reasons. There is a need to pay quick attention to the Dedicated Covid Hospital for improving the service.