Both public and private medical college hospitals in Barisal region lack specialised burn units to cater to patients with burn injuries depriving them from the specialised care.
These days the number of burn injury victims is reportedly on the rise.
The hospital sources said the ongoing political unrest, fireworks at different socio-cultural festivals, firing woods to keep warm in winter were reasons behind the rise.
Dr SM Nazrul Islam, associate professor and specialist of Barisal Sher E Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) surgery unit, said: “More than 5,000 burn injury patients in a year are admitted to the surgery unit and other units in the hospital.”
Though such patients require immediate specialised treatment, they are transferred to other units which also hamper the treatment of other patients of the ward, Dr Kamrul Hasan Selim, acting director of SBMCH said.
Burn-injury patients were found lying on the floor because of lack of space at the 45-year old hospital.
Dr S Mahmud, registrar of SBMCH surgery unit, said: “We often refer the critical victims to Dhaka and admit the rest to surgery and other units for providing first aid and primary care.”
Such rudimentary medical care causes excessive time, risk, pain and expense to the patients.
Many of them die while many suffer permanent damage to body parts, said Dr Maniruzzaman Shahin, assistant professor of SBMCH surgery department.
In July 2010, Dr Md Mumtaz Uddin Bhuiyan, director (Hospital and Clinics), Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), issued a letter asking SBMCH authority to open a special burn unit in the hospital as soon as possible, SBMCH sources said.
In the same year, quoting Dr Samanta Lal Sen, director of burn unit opening project and a specialist of DMCH burn unit, Dr Nazrul said special burn units would be opened in public hospitals at divisional level by middle of 2011.
Though a circular was issued to open burn-units in 17 medical college hospitals and create 98 posts in
those units, no initiative was taken, Dr Nazrul told.
On February 23, 2012 the then Health Minister Dr AFM Ruhul Haque, while inaugurating fifty-seat dental surgery course and eighteen-bed dental surgery unit at SBMCH, assured of opening a burn unit soon.
“However, none of these decisions were implemented and there is no burn-unit at any of the public or private medical college hospitals in Barisal division yet.
Opening a burn-unit in the 45-year old SBMCH still remains a burning issue,” opined Dr Shamsul Hoq, divisional director (Barisal), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
