13 wards shut at Shimla's Kamla Nehru Hospital due to staff crunch

Subhash Rajta

Shimla, February 8

Despite high demand for special wards at Kamla Nehru Hospital in Shimla, the state hospital for mother and child, 13 out of the total 27 special wards are shut for nearly two years now. The hospital has not been able to make these 13 wards functional due to the shortage of nursing staff.

“We don’t have nursing staff to run these special wards at the moment. We have written to the higher-ups for sanctioning us additional nursing staff so that we can put these wards to use,” said KNH MS Dr Ravinder Mokta.

Requesting anonymity, a nursing staff said that the hospital was around 40 nurses short to run the 274-bed facility. At the moment, the hospital has 53 nurses, while the required number is around 95. “So many times we have to put in double shifts, and taking a day off or leave is not easy,” she said.

As for the staff crunch, she said nurses avoid joining the hospital because of high work load. A top official in the Health Department corroborated her statement. “Using political influence, nurses get posted at the place/hospital of their choice,” the official said.

If these wards are made operational the hospital would earn good money. Given that the hospital charges Rs 1,500 per day for a special ward, the hospital stands to earn around Rs 6 lakh per month from these wards. Considering these wards have remained shut for nearly two years now, the hospital has lost out an amount of around Rs 1.5 crore.

Besides, the hospital lacks facilities like waiting hall and canteen for the attendants accompanying the patients. “There’s no place where the attendants can wait and relax while the patient is in OT. One has to wait outside on the road or sit on the stairs inside the hospital,” said Sudarshan Dhirta from Chopal, who had his wife admitted in the hospital a few months back.

“One can still manage in summers, but you can imagine the plight of attendants in the winters,” he said.

The hospital, thankfully, is working on a proposal to create a waiting hall for the attendants. “It’s a genuine problem that the attendants face in the hospital. We are working on it, and hopefully it will be ready shortly,” said Dr Mokta. “Canteen facilities are also being upgraded, and a parking at the hospital is also in the pipeline,” he said.

Nearly 40 nurses less

• Requesting anonymity, a nursing staff said the hospital was around 40 nurses short to run the 274-bed facility.
• At the moment, the hospital has 53 nurses, while the required number is around 95.
• “So many times we have to put in double shifts, and taking a day off or leave is not easy,” she said.