Patient’s family told to bring generator fuel

The family of a patient reportedly had to provide diesel for running the power generator to ensure treatment amid suspension of electricity supply to the Nowshera Tehsil Hospital.

Local resident says the hospital also lacks other facilities required for taking care of the patients. A resident of the Subharal area in Soan Valley, Malik Nasir, told reporters that his family took a patient whose condition had worsened a couple of days ago.

He said the power went out as soon as they reached the hospital. The relatives of the patient requested the staff on duty to begin the treatment because of the emergency situation, upon which they were informed that the generator at the hospital had run out of diesel and they would have to arrange the fuel if they wanted urgent treatment.

The family members bought the diesel and filled the generator.

However, when the need arose to give oxygen to the patient, the family was informed that it was also not available in the hospital, Malik Nasir said. They had to bring he oxygen themselves from the market.

A few days earlier, the hospital administration had informed the family of a young man killed in Mouza Kamra that a doctor to carry out postmortem was not available at the tehsil health facility.

The family was told to take the body to the Joharabad District Headquarters Hospital for postmortem. The DHQ hospital is about 60 kilometres away from Nowshera.

Chaudhry Mudassir, a resident of Nowshera, said while speaking to The Express Tribune that the hospital also lacked other facilities. He said the patients had to buy medicines from the market because they were not available in the hospital. Another local resident, Rana Khalid Masood, said Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz had announced several times that medicines would be provided free of charge to the patients along with other basic health facilities but on the other hand their families had to provide generator fuel and oxygen cylinders at the Tehsil hospital to ensure their treatment.

When contacted, Nowshera THQ Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Sobia Javed said the complaint regarding the demand for diesel and oxygen was being investigated. She said a doctor serving temporarily for postmortem had left the hospital.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2022.