Non-functional lifts at hospital’s child care centre irk visitors

Patients and their attendants at Bebe Nanaki Mother and Child Health Care Centre in Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH) are a harried lot as only one lift is functional there while two others, including those for staff members, were non-functional.

There is also no ramp in the building, thereby amplifying the problems of the visitors.

“How can an expecting mother climb the stairs in case of an emergency situation when only one lift is occupied? Will she climb the stairs to reach the labour room or other wards,” asked Sushil Kumar, an attendant who came with a newborn child for examination.

During a visit to the hospital, the patients, including their attendants, were found waiting in queues outside the only lift functional while a couple of middle-aged women, who had come to meet patients, were seen climbing the stairs with difficulty.

The centre was inaugurated in November 2011 by the then SAD government. However, within some years, the centre associated itself with Government Medical College but has now started showing signs of aging because of lack of maintenance and upkeep by the authorities and the government as well.

One of the lifts near the stairs was closed after a mishap when it fell, claiming the life of a man over a year ago. The parts of the damaged lift, apart from doors, were dumped on the ground floor which gave it a shabby look.

Apart from this, the visitors also complained of inadequate arrangements for the attendants who were seen sitting or lying on the ground outside the different wards, including paediatric, of the nine-storey building.

They brought folding beds and bedding from their homes to stay with their kin admitted to different wards of the centre.

While pointing towards the cockroaches ‘roaming’ on the walls and near the fire extinguishing system, people also complained of unhygienic conditions at the centre.

Ideally, the hospital should have been free of pests, but here they can be seen frequently.

Dr Karamjit Singh, Medical Superintendent, Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH), could not be contacted for his comments despite repeated attempts.