Nurse crunch affects paediatric services

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, August 25

The shortage of staff nurses has been ailing health services at Women and Children Hospital in city on a daily basis.

There is only one permanent staff nurse who works in the morning shift. Apart from attending children at the paediatric ward, she has to look after patients at the thalassaemia ward.

Since, no permanent staff nurse is available during evening and night shifts, the hospital authorities shift patients at the paediatrics unit to the maternity ward every night, compromising quality of care administered to newborns and sick children.

Because of the shifting of additional patients from the paediatrics unit, the workload on medical staff appointed at the maternity ward gets increased manifold. On an average, around six to eight children from the paediatric ward are transferred to the maternity ward every night.

Sources said while those who can afford get their children admitted to private hospitals in city, other children are either referred to Government Hospital in Faridkot.

An employee of the hospital said: “If there is a child who requires critical care or close monitoring during night, then we are left with no alternative but to refer the child to Government Hospital in Faridkot. Despite having the required infrastructure available for the treatment in the hospital, owing to the shortage of staff nurses, we have to refer more than 20 children every month.”

Civil Surgeon Dr Amrik Singh Sandhu said: “There is an acute shortage of staff nurses and doctors at the Civil Hospital and other health centres in the district. The matter was brought to the notice of the DC and the state Finance Minister recently, who have assured us that requisite steps would be taken to resolve the matter.”