Shopian: A shut operation theater, a disrupted oxygen supply and referral of emergency patients. This was the scene at District Hospital Shopian on Thursday.
The patients, whose surgeries were scheduled on Wednesday and Thursday at the facility were left in a bind after the hospital authorities either put off the surgeries or referred them to other hospitals due to a minor but crucial issue.
The generator at the facility has stopped working after it developed a technical issue, spurring the doctors to shut the operation theater. And in absence of a power back up, it could be perilous for medical staff to operate a patient. Since Wednesday morning, at least 20 surgeries including the crucial C-sections were not performed at the hospital.
Waseem Ahmad, an attendant of a gynae patient told Greater Kashmir that his sister-in-law who were scheduled for a C-section on Thursday were sent back home without the procedure.
“We were asked to come the next day”, said Ahmad. He said that they were left in a quandary as they did not know what to do in case the patient developed any complication.
Another attendant said that doctors had referred them to Srinagar. “We were not prepared to go to Srinagar. The hospital authorities informed us at the last moment,” he said.
The hospital authorities have also put the elective surgeries on hold. The story, however, does not stop here. The oxygen plant of the hospital also remained out of order for hours altogether on Wednesday. Amidst a recent surge in the number of COVID-19 cases, it has become more crucial for hospitals to ensure a seamless supply. Last month, the District Hospital Shopian received commendation from NHM under Kayakalp “ Awards for Public Health Facilities” for the financial year 2022-23. The hospital had also generated a revenue of Rs 10, 663,614 from March 2022 to December 2022. However, sources said that since mid-March there had been a dip in the outdoor footfall of patients at the hospital.
At around 5 pm, when this reporter contacted Medical Superintendent Dr Rubeena, she said that the generator was being fixed. “I have called a whole technical team and they are repairing it”, she said, adding that they are almost done.