Mechi hospital lacks doctors‚ basic facilities

26th-04-2012

JHAPA: Jhapa headquarters Bhadrapur-based Mechi Zonal Hospital, is turning into a referral center, thanks to the dearth of manpower and shortage of resources.

Although the hospital was established 35 years ago to cater services to the residents of Taplejung, Panchthar, Ilama and Jhapa, the construction of the health facility is yet to complete. To the locals’ dismay, patients visiting the hospital are referred to other places. Small wonder then the locals are skeptical regarding hospitals’ ability in providing the much needed service.

Patients of serious illness and those related to accidents are either referred to Dharan-based BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences or to India.

Dr Tanka Barakoti, acting medical superintendent at the hospital, said that the dearth of medical doctors, resources and mismanagement are to blame for the deplorable condition of the hospital.

The hospital has government quotas. However, it lacks medical superintendent, dental surgeon, dermatologist, gynecologist, radiologist, among others. The zonal hospital is running without ICU and CT scan machine. Even normal equipments have gone dysfunctional.

So much so that hospital does not have the facility of running water and power. Over 150 patients visit the OPD and 40 visit emergency ward daily. Gobinda chetti,