KOHAT: The government has failed to provide modern treatment facilities and specialist doctors to the 300-bed KDA hospital even after passing of 14 years.

The local people said that delay in appointment of specialist doctors and provision of modern facilities to the hospital forced the residents of southern districts of the province and four tribal agencies to take their patients to Peshawar and Rawalpindi for CT scan, dialysis and major surgeries.

They said that the non-governmental organisations, which were handed over private wards of the hospital, tried to make up for the shortage of the facilities but doctors and paramedics wanted the role of government in it as it collected taxes from the people for the purpose.

The presence of NGOs at the hospital was also hindering expansion of its departments and filling of vacancies, sources said. The private wards and rooms, given to the NGOs, could earn a handsome amount for the government, they added.

People have to take their patients to Peshawar and Rawalpindi

A large number of patients belonging to southern districts, four tribal agencies and four frontier regions have to travel to Peshawar and Rawalpindi for CT scan, dialysis, heart and other major surgeries in this modern age owing to shortage health facilities in Kohat division.

The burns centre of the hospital, inaugurated by lawmakers of different parties several times in the past, has been closed since it was set up for need of treatment facilities and absence of specialist doctors

Sources said that many patients from the far flung tribal areas either died on their way to Peshawar or developed major complications owing to delay in their treatment.

They said that the residents of Kohat spent a large amount of money on treatment of their patients because they had to bear the travelling and boarding expenses besides paying fees to doctors and buying medicine in Peshawar and Islamabad.

The KDA medical complex was made operational 14 years ago. It was designed to provide all modern treatment facilities under one roof to millions of people living in the southern parts of the province and reduce rush of patients on the Peshawar hospitals.

However, the hospital is still short of staff.

The category of the hospital has been changed thrice. The then provincial governor had placed it in category A on the day of its inauguration.

The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, which formed government in the province following 2002 elections, degraded it to category C soon after coming into power and announced that the machinery sanctioned for the hospital be supplied to hospitals in Peshawar.

However, after protest by the local parliamentarians the then governor retired Lt Gen Iftikhar Hussain Shah intervened and the government again placed the hospital in category B. The hospital was again upgraded category A but no facilities were provided to it.

An official said that few influential owners of private hospitals had politicised the issue for their personal interest. It was impossible to run the hospital with the present strength of surgeons and pediatricians.

Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2014