PESHAWAR, Sept 14: Lack of doctors and diagnostic facilities is causing problems for patients in the cardiology ward of the Khyber Teaching Hospital. Established in the 1,000-bed Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH) on March 1, 1979, the ward is in need of more doctors and facilities like angiography and angioplasty.

“For want of equipment, cardiac patients are sent to the Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) for angiography and angioplasty although the doctors here are capable of handling such cases,” said a doctor.

He said that critically-ill cardiac patients had to be sent to the LRH, where there was already a great load on cardiac facilities. “Besides, one day is reserved for doctors of Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC), who take their patients to the LRH to carry out their tests there,” he added.

Doctors at the KTH had requested the authorities, including the health minister, to reserve one day for them so that they could perform tests on their patients at the LRH, but all such requests fell on deaf ears, said the sources.

The LRH has only an eight-bed CCU, but is equipped with all necessary facilities while the KTH has a 12-bed CCU and a 12-bed cardiology ward and is devoid of even the most essential facilities.

Load on the hospital is increasing every year.