Patients compelled to visit private hospitals in Pulwama

PULWAMA — Despite all the medical facilities in District Hospital Pulwama, patients are being forced to turn to private medical centres.

According to the details received here, the private practice of doctors stationed at District Hospital Pulwama has made the lives of poor patients miserable as the hospital authorities are showing no concern in curbing the menace of private practice.

According to sources, the doctors stationed at the district hospital are running private clinics in Pulwama and other places besides Srinagar, as a result of which most of the patients are forced to turn to these clinics.

A local resident, on the condition of anonymity, said that the health department is in deep slumber as after complaints, few doctors are transferred from the district hospital and later such doctors are posted back to the same hospital after a short period of time, he lamented.

Another local said that the district administration has set up a drug store in the district hospital under the Central Assistance Scheme Jan Ashudi for the medical facilities of the patients. “The non-availability of medicines from the shop is also a headache for us,” he lamented.

A resident of Prichoo Pulwama added that he made repeated attempts to bring the matter into the notice of the district administration several times, but they paid no heed to it.

It is worth to mention that a cooperative drug store has also been set up outside the District Hospital Pulwama for the convenience of the people so that the people can get medicines at discounted prices but all in vain.

Despite the government providing all the medical facilities in the district hospital, it is a matter of concern for the patients to be treated at private clinics. He said that there was an urgent need to address such shortcomings of District Hospital Pulwama, due to which patients have to go to private clinics for treatment.

It is pertinent to mention that the government has spent crores of rupees to provide modern facilities in District Hospital Pulwama while last year, a medical college worth crores of rupees was also set up for nursing students where hundreds of students are benefiting by studying nursing subjects.