About 10 million people in Sylhet are deprived of proper health care facilities, as the only modern hospital of the division is struggling to operate with a large manpower shortage.
MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, situated in the north-west side of Sylhet city, is a 900-bed establishment being run with the number of staff and doctors adequate for a 500-bed one.
This has resulted in a dramatic decline in the quality of health care services provided to the more than 2,000 patients that visit the hospital each day.
On February 10, at least 32 people including 10 infants died in a span of 24 hours in the hospital, creating uproar across the country.
Brigadier General Abdus Sabur Miah, director of the hospital, told the Dhaka Tribune there were 950 staff members working there currently, instead of the required 1233.
“Still, 277 posts lie vacant. Of these, 60 are for doctors, 145 for nurses, and the remainder are various posts for administrative officials. We have sent recommendation to the ministry to appoint the necessary doctors and nurses,” he said.
Hospital sources said the number of beds in the hospital was 500 till 1999, when it was increased to 900. However, the number of hospital personnel was not increased accordingly.
Assistant Director of the hospital, Abdus Salam said: “We are trying our best to provide better service, even with a staff shortage. Ours, being a tertiary medical college hospital, we face great a great amount of pressure of patients.”
Meanwhile, the probe committee formed to investigate the 32 unusual deaths on February 10 is yet to submit a report.
Brigadier General Abdus Sabur Miah said the investigation was in its final stages, and the committee was given five more days to complete the report.
“We have contacted the guardians or relatives of some of the deceased patients. But due to the blockade and hartals, they have not been able to come for an interview,” he added.
Following the deaths, the Health Ministry formed separate probe committees headed by Joint Secretary of hospitals Md Mosharraf Hossain and the hospital’s Chief of Medicine Dr Ismail Patwary.
