Overburdened with patients triple its capacity

Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH) is witnessing an overwhelming number of patients, almost three times its capacity, making life difficult for doctors, staff as well as treatment-seekers.

The 1,000-bed hospital is looking after as many as 3,000 inpatients in different wards and even in their corridors every day. The hospital also sees around 6,000 outdoor patients per day.

Three departments in particular-- pediatric, medicine and gynae -- remain overcrowded round the year with rush from various districts.

On a recent visit, this correspondent found the 70-bed pediatric ward had 450 inpatients, the 180-bed medicine ward had 646 patients and the 120-bed gynae ward had 405 patients.

The verandas, corridors and other spare spaces of the wards were filled with patients and this has been an everyday scenario.

On an average, the pediatric and gynae departments admit 120 patients a day while the medicine department admits some 200 patients per day.

“For the patients and their family members who do not get a bed, the sky is their roof, the hard floors of the sickbays their beds, and mosquitos their company. I got admitted on September 27 and have not got any bed yet,” Rokhsana Begum, a patient at the gynae ward, told The Daily Star.

Six-year-old Ramzan was admitted to the pediatric ward on Sunday. “It is heartbreaking especially when we have to stay in this condition with our sick children. But the overall treatment we are getting here is good,” said his father.

The MMCH has been drawing large number of treatment seekers from the district and adjoining areas ever since medical services and overall environment of the facility started improving since 2015.

The hospital now has a clean environment free from medical representatives of pharmaceutical companies or brokers of clinics, 24-hour free pathology service at nominal cost, three separate wards for urology, neurology and burn and plastic surgery, a one-stop service centre, as well as free medicine facility.

At present, it has 339 doctors against 390 posts, 150 interns and 741 nurses as per the organogram of the 100-bed hospital.

“We are a little understaffed now, as we need 100 more doctors to smoothly handle the increasing number of patients. But our present staff are really working hard to ensure standard and patient-friendly service,” said the hospital's Director Brig Gen Md Nasir Uddin Ahamed.

The number of doctors and nursing staff is decided on the basis of beds in the hospital. So, if the hospital's accommodation capacity was increased, more doctors and nursing staff would be included accordingly, he said.

Higher authorities have been informed about the increased number of patients, but no decision has been taken yet, he added.

Contacted, Dr Motiur Rahman Bhuiyan, president of Bangladesh Medical Association, Mymensingh unit, said despite limitations, the hospital is doing a great job which is proving to be satisfactory for patients.

ONCOLOGY WARD NOT FULLFILLING ITS POTENTIAL

Compared to other departments, the oncology department has fewer inpatients, as its only radiation therapy machine has been nonfunctional for the last three years.

As a result, at least 1,000 patients have been left per year with no access to radiotherapy, said Dr Kazi Iftekharuddin Ahmed, head of the oncology department.

The 13-bed department has six doctors against 11 posts, with an operational chemotherapy unit, said Dr Ahmed, adding, “We also provide free medicine.”

But there has been no professor in the department since Prof Md Aminul Islam retired in this July. Talking to The Daily Star recently, he said professors do not want to come here since the radiation therapy machine is broken, and inflow of patients is low as a result. 

MMCH is the only specialised cancer treatment centre in a government hospital in the region. Though some private clinics and hospitals in Mymensingh city provide treatment to cancer patients, a majority of them cannot afford the expensive procedures. Therefore, cancer sufferers have to travel to the capital to receive treatment, which could cost them up to Tk 1 lakh at a private hospital.

“We have informed the higher authorities several times about the radiotherapy machine, but to no avail,” said Laxmi Narayan Majumder, deputy director of MMCH.