Patients suffer as holiday mood prevails at DMCH

Patients have been suffering untold miseries as holiday mood prevailed at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) on Saturday, three days after the Eid holidays ended. Patients and their relatives alleged that they are suffering mainly due to the absence of doctors or late arrival by them. When this correspondent inquired about the reason behind the absenteeism, it was revealed that all junior doctors and interns were on Eid vacations leaving the responsibilities of carrying out the duties of all the doctors on a few physicians who have been attending their duties since before the Eid holidays began on July 28. On Thursday, one Motaleb Miah rushed his nephew ‘Khalil’ to DMCH around 4pm. The 12-year old boy suffered severe head injuries when he was hit by an auto-rickshaw and needed immediate medical attention. But much to his disappointment, Motaleb found there was no doctor at Ward No 100 to attend to his nephew. He was left waiting anxiously for the doctor. The doctor designated for that ward was busy attending patients at ward number 103. An hour later, when the doctor was finally free to attend Khalil, it was too late. The doctor declared him dead. Similarly, truck driver Abdul Jalil brought his wife Jesmin Begum, 27, who was hit by a pickup, to DMCH in the afternoon and was seen waiting in front of Ward 103 hopelessly for a doctor. Jalil said his wife received first aid at the emergency department around 2:30pm. He said they had to wait until 5:30pm for a doctor to come and complete the procedure for her admission in the ward. Same was the case in 201 and 204 where mostly victims of road accidents were being treated on Thursday, the first working day after the three-day Eid holidays. Patients are dying or unbearably suffering for want of physicians, employees and staff at the DMCH. When asked the DMCH authorities said: ‘In normal days, junior doctors and interns are there. Teachers of the college (DMC) also come to see patients. That’s why we don’t face this much pressure. Teachers are even coming now. But the junior doctors and inters are on Eid leave, that’s the reason of breakdown in work schedule,’ according to a news agency.