MULTAN: The departments of quality assurance, continuous quality improvement and infection and control department of Nishtar Hospital in a report highlighted mismanagement and a variety of concerns at the accident and emergency department of the hospital.

According to a report submitted to Vice-Chancellor of the Nishtar Medical University Dr Mustafa Kamal Pasha, the combined team had a surprise visit of accident and emergency department, emergency operation theatre, peads surgery, general surgical and dressing room on July 20 where the ward No9 was on the call.

The combined team observed that the hygienic and cleanliness in the dressing room, operating theatre (OT) and surgical ward were very poor; the wound debridement of ward patient Munawar with amputated leg was being done in the dressing room openly without observing the hygiene and aseptic measures. There was no segregation of waste, and no care of sterilization in the dressing room and the OT. Surgeons in OT uniform were moving between ward, dressing room and the OT. The OT recovery room has a large opening over the door between OT recovery and surgical ward which is more than enough to destroy the sterilization of the recovery room.

Only one cardiac monitor was present in the OT recovery, while surgeons were moving in the OT with their general shoes and dresses without wearing even shoe covers. All the doors of the OT were wide open during the surgery, while the patients admitted to the wards were being operated in the OT of the emergency department. Chart documentation was very poor; drugs were being cut with a wavy/straight line instead of omitting properly. No drug charts were signed and stamped by the doctors, while there was no labelling of burettes and drips, and no display of high-risk medicine on the nursing station. Electricity boards at various places were broken and were in very dangerous conditions.

Earlier, a team of the Provincial Healthcare Commission inspected the hospital’s various wards, including accident and emergency ward, from April 23 to April 24. The team was headed by deputy director inspection Dr Muqaddas who was accompanied by Dr Iqbal Muhammad and Dr Rasheed Ahmed as members.

The inspection team found gross deficiencies and severe negligence in implementation of instructions by healthcare commission in respect to various key indicators against minimum service delivery standards and dedicators for hospitals set by healthcare commission.

The hospital scored very poorly in compliance to set indicators.

There were 162 indicators, of which 159 were applicable for Nishtar hospital.

The hospital gave full compliance to only 70 indicators, no compliance to 83 indicators and partial compliance with 6 indicators.

The important indicators in which the hospital scored very poor were access, assessment and continuity of care scored 70 out of 130 (50%) points, care of patients 148 out of 360 (38%), management of medication148 out of 210(65%), patients rights and education 82 out of 120 (68%), hospital infection control 60 out of 90 (66%), continuous quality improvement 35 out of 150 (20%), responsibilities of management 90 out of 100 (90%), facility management and safety 35 out of 120 (8%), human resource management 60 out of 130 ( 35%) and information management system 90 out of 180 (50%).

The team showed the displeasure on poor compliance with important key indicators and issued warnings to hospital administration for improvement as further deterioration may lead to de-licensing of one of the biggest teaching hospital of Punjab by healthcare commission.

The hospital scored only 818 out of total 1,710 points (47 per cent).

FIRE: The official record of the Multan Metro Bus Project and traffic police was burnt after a fire erupted in a record room in the Shah Shams Park on Monday.

Rescue 1122 and the Lohari Gate Police staff extinguished the fire.

The police said the record was of no importance and for that reason, no FIR of the incident was lodged.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2019