Dialysis services at Feni General Hospital remain suspended for three weeks

The hospital was submerged due to recent flooding

FE Team | Published: September 10, 2024 21:46:54

FENI, Sep 10 (UNB): Dialysis services at Feni General Hospital, a 250-bed facility, have been suspended for 21 days since the ground floor of the hospital was submerged due to recent flooding, causing woes to patients suffering from kidney problems.
While most services have resumed after the floodwaters receded, the hemodialysis unit remains closed, leaving patients who rely on regular dialysis treatments in distress.
Currently, there are only four private clinics in the city offering dialysis services, but the costs are significantly higher than at the government hospital.
Many patients from poorer and lower-income backgrounds who depend on the hospital for affordable care are now facing severe challenges. Two patients have already died reportedly due to the unavailability of the service.
Visiting the hospital on Monday (September 09), the correspondent found the hemodialysis unit closed. Several patients who came for their dialysis sessions had to leave without treatment.
Resident Medical Officer (RMO) Dr. Asif Iqbal could not provide a specific timeline for the reopening of the unit, stating that the motor and some equipment are being repaired in Dhaka and will be returned once fixed.
Mostafizur Rahman, a patient, said private dialysis services are 5-6 times more expensive than at government facilities.
"With the hospital unit closed, private clinics are exploiting the situation to charge exorbitant fees. Many patients who had deposited Tk 22,000 for six months of treatment at the hospital are not receiving the services they paid for."
Fahima Akter Bithi, from Mirzangor Union of Parshuram upazila, said her husband, who has been suffering from kidney failure , cannot afford the high costs of private dialysis. "He had been receiving treatment at Feni General Hospital, but following the flood, the hospital relocated the dialysis equipment and has yet to resume services," she said.
Feni General Hospital serves as a critical resource for residents of six upazilas in Feni district and nearby areas including Khagrachhari, Mirsharai and Sitakunda in Chattogram, Bashurhat in Noakhali, Senbagh, and Chauddagram in Comilla.
The hospital currently serves 210 kidney patients, with about 500 applications pending. The situation is dire, as each patient's death creates a vacancy in the dialysis queue.
Dr. Joydeb Saha, Head of the Kidney Dialysis Department, said that kidney patients require dialysis approximately twice a week. Failure to receive timely treatment can lead to severe health complications or death, he said.