Defunct autoclaves hits services at Mandi hospital

Dipender Manta

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Tribune News Service

Mandi, July 3

Autoclave machines are out of order in Zonal Hospital, Mandi, due to which services in the operation theatre have been adversely affected in the past two days. Patients are being referred to Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, and Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, for medical treatment, which has led to physical harassment of patients and has also added to their financial burden.

The hospital is bearing the burden of patients coming from neighbouring district of Kullu, Lahaul-Spiti and Mandi district, as a majority of health institutions in the region lack adequate health staff. The footfall of patients is high in the zonal hospital every day.

An autoclave machine is used to sterilise instruments used to operate the patients. Due to the non-functioning of autoclave machines, doctors on duty are unable to perform surgery. According to official sources, 20 to 30 surgery cases from different departments like orthopedics, gynaecology are dealt with every day on the hospital premises, but for the past two days, the surgeries are being postponed or patients are being referred to the IGMC, Shimla, or PGIMER, Chandigarh.

However, the hospital authority has purchased one mini-autoclave machine to sterilise instruments for minor surgeries. Poor patients suffer the most as they cannot afford the expenditure to go to Shimla or Chandigarh to avail medical treatment.

On Monday, five surgeries from the orthopedics department was scheduled, out of which, only one was performed by the doctors on duty. Dr TC Mahant, Medical Superintendent of Zonal Hospital, Mandi, said there was water seepage in the wall of the autoclave machine. Due to which, there was leakage of electric current in the entire wall, where the machine was installed.

“To fix the problem, we are taking the help of technical staff of the Public Works Department” he added.