Healthcare services at Sonagazi Upazila Health Complex are being seriously hampered due to various problems, including shortage of beds for the patients, inadequate numbers of doctors and nurses and insufficient sanitation facilities.

Although the hospital is dubbed as 50-beded one, the actual number of beds is now only19 as one of the two buildings of the health complex was demolished in January this year for its dilapidated condition.

As a result, patients are taking shelter on the floor and staircase of the hospital after getting no beds. Moreover, patients who come to the health complex for taking emergency services are being treated in a tin-shed room.

According to the hospital sources, a total of 85 patients, including 42 children, were admitted in 19 beds of the hospital on Tuesday. Moreover, 577 patients took service from emergency and outpatient departments of the hospital on the day.

Many patients have complained about the bed crisis, inadequate sanitation facilities and manpower shortage.

UpazilaHealth Complex Nursing Supervisor Rezia Begum said “a large number of patients from the remote areas of the upazila come here for treatment every day. Many of them were being sent to the district headquarters hospital for lack of space.”

The health complex started its journey as a rural medical center at Zero Point in Sonagazi municipality in 1965. In 1977, it was converted into a 31-bed Thana Health Complex. Later, a three-storey building with 19 beds was constructed to make it a 50-beded hospital but the authorities had to demolish the old building as it was unfit for use.

According to the sources of the Directorate of Health and Engineering, a firm named Moni and JHN JB Enterprise has been entrusted with the construction of a new three-storey building at a cost of Tk96,799,525. On June 27 last year, the firm was given 11 months to complete the construction of the building. But, the contractor started the work of the new building in the last week of this month, a year behind schedule.

Mahfuzur Rahman, assistant engineer of the Directorate of Health Engineering in Feni, said that due to the delay in demolishing the old building of the hospital, the contractor has also delayed in starting the construction. Now it is going on in full swing.

In this regard, Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Utpal Dash said, the hospital is said to have 50 beds, but so far the 50-bedoperation is going on with the manpower of 31 beds. However, there is a shortage of all kinds of manpower, including doctors and nurses. The shortage of beds and rooms has also caused problems in providing medical services and conducting official activities. After a long time, the construction work of the new building has started, but no progress is seen in the work.

He also said that after demolishing the old building, the contractor was entrusted with constructing a shed for 20-bed on the rooftop of the 19-bed building to handle the additional patient pressure. But, the firm did not construct the shed forcing patients to face a lot of hardships.

The matter has been reported to the higher authorities, he said.

When contacted to talk about the matter, no one from the construction company agreed to speak over the issue.