Theft of medicines from the Guzdarabad General Hospital and Maternity Home has become a lucrative source of extra income for corrupt hospital staff, while poor patients are at the receiving end, as they have to either purchase drugs from private medical stores or simply discontinue their treatment.
On the other hand, facility continues to face severe shortage of doctors, paramedics and medicines for the last several months, making it miserable for the patients. A visit to the hospital on Tuesday exposed how the ailing inmates undergo miseries for the lack of much needed medicines there. On the other hand, medical stores adjacent to the very hospital thrive on the rising demands for the medicines.
Facility has a 120-bed capacity for general, paediatrics, gynaecological and surgical patients, showed that currently the hospital just operates as a day-care centre for mothers, children and out-patient department patients mainly due to the apathy of the authorities concerned towards running its affairs. A 40-year-old attendant Salman Jokhio from Larkana told the sad state of his younger brother Marvi at the hospital for the lack of attention by the doctors and shortage of the prescribed medicines.
"Doctors just overlook the patient here and write medicines on a chit and we have to buy from the nearby medical stores as the hospital staffs told us none of them are available there," he said. They said visiting patients in OPD as well as admitted patients are buying medicines from private medical stores as the hospital administration has failed to give them relief. OPD patients informed that due to unavailability of medicines in the hospital, they are buying medicines from private medical stores. Over 200 patients report in OPD every day.