Bandipora hospital ICUs ‘upgraded’ on paper, locked on ground

Sheikh Saleem

Bandipora, Feb 03: Government claims of upgraded paediatric and maternal intensive care facilities at District Hospital Bandipora have fallen flat on the ground, with key ICU wards lying defunct and state‑of‑the‑art machinery worth crores gathering dust.

Despite government’s disclosure of major infrastructure augmentation under PM-ABHIM and  Emergency Covid Response Package (ECRP‑II) in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly today, the hospital continues to refer critical cases to Srinagar as dedicated ICUs have been converted into waiting rooms and offices.

While replying to a question raised by MLA Nizamuddin  Bhat, the government said that the hospital has a paediatric hybrid ICU, an oxygen-supported paediatric ward and a maternal ICU. However, the ground reality tells a different story as none of them is functional, leading to a major expose with locals smelling a multi crore scam.

The state-of-art medical equipment worth crores is gathering dust or is deteriorating in stores.

Much to the embarrassment of the hospital administration, the government informed that the Assembly that major interventions are underway to improve health sector including Under ECRP-II, a 12-bed Paediatric Hybrid ICU, 30-bed Oxygen Supported Paediatric Ward and 10-bed Maternal ICU have been established at district hospital.

However, the fact of the matter is that both Paediatric hybrid ICU and maternal ICU lie defunct and have been locked for the last several years even as medical equipment worth crores for the same have been procured.

Sources said that the equipment has been gathering dust inside the pre-fabricated huts constructed for these ICUs inside the hospital premises as they lie defunct since the construction of huts and procurement of the medical equipment and state-of-the-art machinery.

The government disclosed that under the PM–Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), a 50-bed Critical Care Block had also been approved, with the technical bid evaluated and the financial bid opened.

The 30-bed Oxygen-Supported Paediatric Ward, which the government said has been established by spending crores of rupees, has been converted intro a routine immunisation centre and is being used as a waiting room for outpatients of gynaecology unit.

Similarly, the 10-bed Maternal ICU, established to handle high-risk pregnancies and obstetric emergencies, is being used for administrative and official work, rendering it inaccessible for patient care as the hospital continues to frequently refer critical paediatric and maternal cases to Srinagar due to lack of specialised care despite augmentation of health infrastructure as claimed by the government.

Meanwhile, locals have expressed surprise over the claims made by the government, blaming the district administration and the hospital authorities for remaining mute spectators over the issue. “This seems to be a major scam. Government has provided requisite funds and established the facilities but for the past many years people have been kept in dark as these facilities lie defunct and continue to remain locked, making common citizens suffer,” they said.

They said the government’s aim to provide these facilities is to take healthcare services at the doorstep and ease the burden on city hospitals but contrary to this, the inefficient officers at the helm have failed not only the government but resorted to criminal negligence by not making these facilities functional.

Official sources said many equipments procured under the schemes have also been found missing, while the pre-fabricated huts remain locked since their construction. “These facilities were never opened to public. We smell something fishy. Now that government has also acknowledged on the floor of the house that paediatric ICU and maternal ICU have been set up in the hospital, it must be probed that as to why these facilities have not been made functional despite procurement of machinery worth crores. The officials responsible for such criminal negligence must be taken to task,” they said.