AT LAST, the capital’s premier healthcare centre Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) is going to be patient-friendly as the authority decided to bring all the pathological tests under one roof. Normally, the patients have to run for the blood, X-ray or ultrasound tests from one corner to other that ultimately affect their physical condition. DMCH gives the healthcare service to 1500 people alone every day. But in comparison to its service, the infrastructural facilities and number of medical staff of the hospital are poor. The new unit will ensure all available services from a nearby space and ease the sufferings of the service seekers.
What’s unfortunate is that, the emergency service in the largest hospital is in ailing condition for years like many other government hospitals across the country. Despite huge modernisation and opening of largest burn unit; it failed to meet the demand. The DMCH with a capacity of 1,700 beds is providing treatment to about 2,500 daily with a capacity of one-third of the manpower only. With about 266 doctors and 653 nurses working there, we do believe, it’s not possible to provide suitable services to the increasing number of indoor and outdoor patients. Shockingly, a large number of the patients got admitted to DMCH are forced to seek treatment from the floor beddings, and compelled to take pathological test elsewhere that increase the cost as well as sufferings of the patients.
With the poor public healthcare system, private hospitals have mushroomed across the country. Many of these hospitals run efficiently and offer modern diagnostic and clinical facilities. But there has also been a profusion of commercialised clinics and hospitals with hardly any accountability. In this situation, DMCH needs more portable medical equipment, like X-ray machines, beds, and operation facilities.
The modernisation process initiated by the authorities would hopefully make the DMCH equipped with state-of-the-art medical facilities and ensure proper healthcare to everyone.
