RAO Bahadur Udhawdas Tarachand (RBUT) Hospital, the only district hospital in Shikarpur, providing healthcare services to the people is struggling to provide effective care to those who need it, with the quality of services being far from satisfactory.

The conditions prevailing at the hospital are alarming, especially for the poor pati-ents who travel from rural areas seeking medical help. Troubling scenes are witnessed daily, with villagers, particularly women carrying their babies, wandering from one place to another in confusion, desperately seeking information and trying to reach the relevant doctors for prescriptions.

One of the most pressing complaints is the non-availability of doctors, especially female doctors. Also, medicines are not provided to the poor patients by the hospital.

During a recent visit to the city’s largest public-sector hospital, I encountered a deeply troubling situation. I found a man standing outside the ultrasound room fleecing helpless patients from rural areas, collecting illegal money for allowing the patients to enter the ultrasound room. When I questioned him about these unauthorised charges, the man quickly disappeared from the scene. This is a clear example of how the poor are fleeced on the premises. There should be someone to rectify the situation and hold such persons accountable for their illegal acts.

Making matters worse was the fact that the ultrasound result I received was inaccurate. Concerned about the report, I sought a second opinion at a private hospital where I received a clear and accurate diagnosis.

This is a sorry state of affairs that is prevailing at Shikarpur’s lone public-sector hospital. The people deserve better, and those in power need to provide it.

Sidra Soomro
Shikarpur

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2024