No wheelchairs at GMC Baramulla, patients suffer

Baramulla: Scores of patients who travel long distance to receive healthcare facilities at the Government Medical College and Associated Hospital (GMC&H) Baramulla face inconvenience due to the absence of wheelchairs.

The absence of wheelchairs often forces attendants to carry patients on their shoulders.In many cases, patients have to take several stops to catch their breath.

   

“I had to carry my 78-year-old grandmother to the first floor of the hospital today. There was no wheelchair in sight and my repeated requests to various staff members yielded no results,” said Basharat Ahmad, a resident of Marazigund Rafiabad.

The GMC&H Baramulla caters to the healthcare needs of entire Baramulla district which has a population of over 10 lakh as per Census 2011.

Manzoor Ahmad Dar of Tujjar Sharief Sopore complained that his mother had to limp all the way to the ortho section as no wheelchairs were available.

“My mother was referred here from SDH Sopore after she slipped in the washroom but I don’t think the situation here is any better,” Dar said.

GMC&H Baramulla was inaugurated in August 2019 by the then Governor, Satya Pal Malik.

The establishment of the GMC&H at Baramulla raised hopes among the patients of entire Baramulla district that a better healthcare system would be now available.

The associated hospital serves as the first referral unit for over 330 medical facilities across Baramulla district which include SDHs, CHCs, PHCs, NTPHCs, UPHCs, and Ayush centres.

The hospital authorities though claim that wheelchairs are available in the hospital and blame attendants of patients for their non-availability.

However, majority of the visitors to hospital castigated the hospital administration.

“Scores of employees are working on Hospital Development Fund (HDF) here. The hospital administration can use some of them to look after wheel chair availability for the patients,” said Fayaz Ahmad, who was attending to his ailing father.

GMC&H Baramulla Medical Superintendent, Dr Javid Iqbal told Greater Kashmir that wheelchairs were available but unfortunately the attendants of the patients abandon them after use at various places where these cannot be cant traced easily.

He said that the administration would allocate a separate space for the wheelchairs.

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