On duty: Not so joyous celebrations

Patients and doctors alike spend Eid in hospitals.

RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD:

Eid --- three days full of festivities --- are mostly celebrated in the traditional way with family get-togethers and bonding over food. But for some, Eid is just another day at the hospital surrounded by health staff and other patients and attendants.

Sakeena Bibi, a resident of Abbotabad, came to Polyclinic hospital last Monday with complaints of severe stomach aches. She was diagnosed with severe gastroenteritis. The pain nevertheless has not let her down.

Lying on the bed of a medical unit, all Sakeena can think of is of how she spent last Eid with her family.  “I remember I cooked minced meet, roasted lamb leg and Biryani which was highly appreciated by my relatives,” said Sakeena while talking to The Express Tribune.

“Doctors say she will have to stay in the hospital for another week due to her critical condition,” Nisar Ahmed, her elder son informed.

Her daughter, Nargis Bibi, on the other hand, recalled how their mother cooked the delicious food on Eid.

“She treats the sacrificial animals as her kids. She wakes up early to take them out for grazing and later ties them near the kitchen so it is easier for her to keep an eye on them”.

Like their mother, they too are a bit sad about spending Eid in the hospital, far away from their family but are hopeful that their mother would soon recover.

Eid this time round isn’t much different for Khalida Bibi, on the bed next to Sakeena’s. With oxygen masks attached to her to help her breathe, Eid this time round will be painful.

“She has been unconscious for the past three days and her condition is worsening instead of improving,” her elder son, Mohammad Javaid, said.

“Whenever she comes out from this condition her blood pressure and sugar level shoots up, so right now all we can think about is her recovery,” said Shahida, her daughter, adding that Eid is all about sharing happiness but how can one be happy with their mother struggling for life.

Nadia will also spend her Eid at the Nephrology Department of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims).

Hailing from Gilgit-Baltistan, Nadia says it will not be easy for her to go home and come back after Eid however, she is hopeful that her cousin living in Islamabad will be with her over the holidays.

Similar situation in the twin city

Things are not very different in Rawalpindi where patients are going through a similar ordeal. It is not just the patients who spend Eid away from home but their attendants too are forced to be away from home.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Salman Saeed, who is to spend Eid at the Holy Family Hospital with his ailing mother, said though he would like to be back home for Eid there was nothing more important than his mother. “We will truly celebrate when she recovers”.

Eid is not the same for doctors either. A senior physician at the Polyclinic hospital, who wished not to be named, said usually the hospital administration discharges 70-80 per cent patients before Eid because most of the medical staff wants to celebrate Eid at their homes and not in hospitals. “Only patients who are critical and need extra medical care are asked to stay back,” he said.

He further added that the hospital administration usually does not make any special arrangements for these patients to make them feel at home on Eid because of budget constraints.

Dr Umer Farooq of the Holy Family Hospital and resident of Gujar Khan said he will be on duty and will spend Eid with patients.

“The admitted patients and their family members celebrate Eid with us. They serve us with delicious dishes and cold drinks,” he said.

Administration of the Allied hospitals has directed medical staff, including doctors and nurses, to remain on duty on Eid.

Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Asif Qadir Mir maintained that medical and supporting staff including surgeons and medical specialists along with nursing staff will be on duty in every ward.

Doctors, nursing and other supporting staff will also be on duty in other hospitals including District Headquarters Hospital and Holy Family Hospital.

“Patients will receive medical treatment as usual,” Mir said, adding that besides the nursing staff doctors will also be on duty in every ward especially the emergency and dengue wards.

A source in DHQ Hospital said lists carrying names of doctors and nursing staff who will be on duty will be displayed on notice boards of the hospitals.

The medical superintendents of all hospitals have directed medical officers to pay special attention to patients. Besides, emergency wards will also remain alert to deal with any emergency situation due to the prevailing security threats. Hospitals have also been directed to ensure there should be sufficient supply of medicines and extra beds should be arranged in the wards.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2014.