Mismanaged, short-staffed : Hassanabdal Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in a shambles

Medical superintendent says budget provided by government not enough

HASSANABDAL: Due to gross mismanagement, shortage of required staff, and lack of facilities and funds, the Hassanabdal Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) Hospital epitomises the Punjab government’s missing sense of seriousness towards the deplorable healthcare sector in the province.

The hospital building, constructed during the tenure of former prime minister Shaukat Aziz, serves as a medical facility in name only.



Patients requiring surgery, and those arriving with serious ailments at the facility, usually get referred to medical centres in Rawalpindi, since the hospital lacks a full-time surgeon, gynaecologist, as well as other important staff and necessary equipment. The sorry state-of-affairs is not new.

Despite claims by the Punjab Health Department that adequate facilities are available at all public-sector hospitals in the province for treatment of dengue patients, the situation at the THQ hospital is rather depressing.

A visiting surgeon operates upon patients twice a week, whereas nurses and male doctors are left to handle cases of childbirth.

The hospital also lacks a trauma centre and sufficient ambulances, despite the fact that most motorway accident victims are brought to the hospital, as it is the nearest.

Dengue patients

In an instance, the shortage of facilities at the hospital has proven fatal for a dengue patient.



Patients are usually referred to hospitals in Taxila or Rawalpindi, causing delay in early treatment which puts their lives at stake.

Last week, the problem was exposed when a resident, Riaz Hussain, and his three children were brought to the hospital, complaining of fever.

The doctors, without conducting any thorough tests declared them as suffering from malaria, and sent them back with medicines for the disease.

Later, they went to a hospital in Taxila to get a second opinion, where they were all diagnosed dengue positive. Hussain and his children were fortunate to get the right diagnosis and timely treatment.

A resident of Wah Cantt, Shahid Mehmood’s 24 year-old-son was not so fortunate. Mehmood told The Daily Express that he took his son who was suffering from fever to the THQ hospital but he did not get treated in time. Mehmood said they later referred his son to the DHQ hospital where he died.



Hospital Medical Superintendent Shahid Hafeez said an inquiry committee had been set up by the health department to probe the incident.

Gynaecologist

Two positions of gynaecologists are vacant in the hospital as well as that of a regular doctor. During last month alone, over 77 childbirth cases were handled by the nursing staff due to absence of a qualified gynaecologist. Meanwhile, two caesarean section cases were handled by the visiting male surgeon.

Motorway accidents 

Officials of the motorway police say most victims of traffic accidents are brought to the THQ hospital since it’s the nearest medical facility. They said the injured usually did not get any more than first aid.

A police official, requesting anonymity, said he had witnessed several deaths at the hospital’s emergency department due to shortage of facilities as it was only equipped for providing treatment for minor injuries.

Patients and attendants

Patients and their attendants are often found irritated due to shortage of staff and medical facilities. They said provision of basic health facilities was the government’s responsibility but it did not seem interested.

Saeed Ahmed, an attendant, said the hospital was unable to provide basic health treatment and patients were asked to bring x-ray films, syringes and even bandages.

Humayun Khan, a patient, complained about the non-cooperative attitude of the laboratory staff and shortage of syringes for blood test.

Official’s response

The hospital’s MS said the situation was due to insufficient budget.  He said that the annual x-ray budget was around Rs200,000, which was only enough for three months.

“The hospital receives Rs400,000 to Rs500,000 annually in purchasing funds, which is insufficient,” the MS said.

“Although the health department has increased the hospital’s budget from Rs1.9 million to Rs2.9 million, it is not enough to provide sufficient health facilities, for which the hospital needs at least Rs10 million annually,” Hafeez said.

He said the hospital had requested the provincial health department in this regard.

Translated by Shazia Mehboob.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 2^nd, 2015.