Cumilla Medical College Hospital (CMCH) is unable to provide necessary medical services to its patients for lack of manpower and equipment, causing sufferings to low-income people who largely depend on this public hospital.   Residents of 17 upazilas of the district and that of Chandpur and Brahmanbaria come to the hospital to avail of basic medicare at a lower cost.   During a recent visit to the hospital, the UNB correspondent found two warmers out of three lying out of order for long while the authorities concerned are struggling to provide services with two phototherapy machines at its pediatric department.   There are four Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) at the hospital but all of those are out of service.   Shahnaz Begum, in-charge of the Pediatric Department, said premature babies, low-birth weight infants and babies with respiratory problems are admitted to the pediatric department of the hospital.

 
But they face too much trouble in providing them necessary services with only two warmers and photo machines, she said.
 
Roksana Akhter, a relative of a patient, said, “I came to the hospital with a baby suffering from respiratory problem but the hospital authorities refused to admit it for lack of warmer.”
 
Besides, she said, the washrooms and toilets of the hospital are not cleaned properly due to lack of cleaners, posing health risk to its patients and others.
 
The relatives of patients suffer for lack of safe water as the water of the hospital running from its tap is contaminated and dirty.
 
There is only one elevator available at the emergency unit of the hospital and people and patients get stuck in it as it often goes out of order due to lack of maintenance.
 
Manwar Hossain Rubel, a patient, said, “This is unfortunate that there’s no equipment to provide life support to critical patients but thousands of people throng the hospital for availing of medical treatment.”
 
Dr Mohammad Azizul Hossain, the chief of the Pediatric Department, said “The number of patients with cold-related diseases has increased in winter and some 7-8 children are born at the hospital in the pediatric ward every day. We struggle to provide healthcare services to the children due to the lack of necessary machines. We’re trying to bring necessary machineries.”
 
Director of Cumilla Medical College and Hospital Dr Amin Ahmed Khan said there are 629 staff and employees against 709 posts at the hospital. Seventy-nine posts have long been lying vacant. Of them, 34 are of Grade-I, 31 of Grade II (nursing), two of Grade II (non-medical), seven of Garde III and five of Grade IV.
 
“We’re taking an initiative to set up an ICU unit at the hospital soon,” he said.