A sub-district level hospital that serves as the main hospital for Kupwara district is severely short of doctors, leaving patients from around 30 villages grossly underserved.
Two doctors available in the Out Patient Department see more than 1400 patients on an average day.
“You can imagine how two doctors can handle so much rush of patients,” said Fareed Shaheen, Block Medical Officer, adding, patient care is badly hit at the hospital that caters a population of seven lakh.
Residents of the remote frontier district areas say absence of the required doctors forces them to seek treatment from private clinics and hospitals at very high costs.
“The non-availability of specialists is forcing us move to private hospitals,” said Arshid Ahmad of Bohipora.
Posts for specialist doctors are lying vacant in the hospital which has no pediatrician.
The hospital has three posts sanctioned for orthopedicians but only is available. Similarly, against three Gynecologist posts only one is available.
Sometimes patients referred to Srinagar from here die on the way as ambulances take around two hours to reach.
On an average day six patients are sent to Srinagar from this hospital.
“At around 170 patients have been transferred to Srinagar from 1st January till date,” BMO Shaheen said.
“Out of six medical officer’s only one is available here.”
The hospital caters to patients from remote villages like Tangdhar, Kralpora, Keran, Machil, Sogam, Hayhama, Batpora, Zurhama, Meelyal, Farkiyan, Drugmulla, Keegam, Kandi, Nagri, Mugalpora, Deedkoot, and several others.
Sources said that the higher authorities were aware of the crisis faced by the locals in the hospital and were not taking enough interest in upgrading the facility or in posting more doctors here.