PESHAWAR, Jan 18: Shortage of staff, equipment and medicines have been adversely affecting the performance of the gastroenterology and hepatology department of the Hayatabad Medical Complex.

According to health officials, the department started its operation at the nursing hostel of the Hayatabad Medical Complex in May 1997 until it was shifted to a proper building in 2002.

The gastroenterology and hepatology department was first established at the Lady Reading Hospital in 1992 till its shifting to the Hayatabad Medical Complex.

Having got the services of four specialists, five trainee medical officers and one medical officer, the department provided facilities for some 150 admitted patients per month, whereas about 250 patients were examined by the doctors at the Outpatients department (OPD) that was conducted twice a week.

“The department is yet to bring its performance to the desired level because of shortage of staff, equipment and drugs,” said an official at the Hayatabad Medical Complex.

He said that the provincial chief secretary acknowledging the problems of the department during a meeting had asked the secretary health to provide the desired staff and equipments to the department, but nothing had been materialised despite the passing of a year.

The 40-bed sole gastroenterology and hepatology ward of the province is also catering to the diagnostic needs of patients. Patients from Afghanistan are frequent visitors, but the workload is hampering diagnostic procedures as well as their treatment.

Three out of six endoscopy machines are lying out of order and despite repeated requests they are yet to be repaired. Doctors are required to carry out 30-35 diagnostic procedures per week, which can be doubled provided the out-of-order machines are repaired.

Shortage of equipment has also been badly hampering the training of trainee medical officers because according to the protocol of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Pakistan, trainee medical officers should be involved in more diagnostic procedures so that their skills could be refined.

But senior doctors fear that the rest of the machines could go out of order if they were left at the mercy of the trainee medical officers thus depriving them of their right of getting much-needed training.

“The department is meant to provide treatment to patients complaining of internal bleeding due to hepatitis. About 80 per cent of the patients happen to be suffering from hepatitis B and C,” a source at the hospital told this correspondent.

A source at the health secretariat said that the government was planning to pump a huge amount of money towards the establishment of an institute of hepatology with a view to raise awareness regarding the killer disease.

“But the government should first provide facilities to the existing ward and then go for establishment of other institutes. We don’t need buildings but staff, equipment and medicines,” he said.

A hepatologist said that in the presence of the gastroenterology and hepatology ward, there was no need to establish an institute of hepatology. He said that the budget allocated for the new institute be directed towards the existing unit, so it could perform better.

Normal per day cost of one patient was Rs2,000 because they purchased all the drugs from the market. “We are already providing more information to the patients and their relatives regarding preventive measures of hepatitis,” said a doctor at the ward.