Severe staff crunch at Niloufer Hospital

Red Hills: The surroundings are not clean, leftover food by attendants is all over the place and the air is filled with smell of medicine and garbage. The Niloufer Hospital, one of the premier hospitals in the city attracts patients not just from the capital city but also from nearby states, including Karnataka and Maharashtra. Patients complain that the doctors are available only between 9 am to 1 pm and there is just one caretaker per room.

Akshay (name changed on request), a cleaner claimed that there are about 70-80 workers but there is a need for more than 100 for three buildings. Another sweeper, Rekha on condition of anonymity said, “In spite of huge work-load, we are paid only Rs 8,400 per month and many a time work additional hours as there is less staff.” Anam, a pediatrician said, “There is lot of pressure on doctors as the number of patients is increasing every day. There are patients from different districts not only in Telangana but also from Karnataka and Maharashtra. This is a tertiary hospital and we have to admit all patients referred to us in any condition, whether we have space or not.”

“This hospital is well-known for pediatrics and as it is a government hospital, people from all over (of which many are poor) come to us for treatment. The patients and attainders are ignorant and don’t keep the premises hygienic even though it gets cleaned two times a day”, said another pediatrician. Vidya, a Gynecologist said, “The number of doctors when compared to that of patients is less. The ratio is a complete mismatch.” A senior doctor said, “The biggest problem is the number of people accompanying a patient. At times the whole family lands up at the hospital. They dirty the place and also cause inconvenience to others.” There should be only one attender per patient.

The visitors also don’t leave their footwear in the shoe-racks provided at some places and many of them take shelter in parking lots and even on floors of corridors. Sameer, a resident of Sanathnagar said, “I brought my daughter here three days back with signs of Pneumonia. She was in a very bad condition, suffering from high temperature and continuous cough, and now, within few days she is completely fine and now she is going to get discharged soon.”

BY Asna Khundmiri