HYDERABAD, Sept 29: The fate of the regional police hospital in Hyderabad hangs in the balance because the needed fund has not yet been sanctioned.

When opened, the hospital would cater to healthcare needs of about 25,000 policemen of eleven districts and their families.

The issue of funding is in the knowledge of the Sindh chief minister and he had appreciated working of the hospital.

The fully renovated building houses a 50-bed hospital with a well-equipped four-bed intensive care unit, eye surgery section, dialysis unit and operation theatre.

The hospital has facilities for physiotherapy, dental treatment ultrasound equipment, diabetic clinic and cardiac OPD.

If the funding is not approved it would not be possible for the hospital administration to meet its recurring cost. So far the hospital is being entirely run generious donations from philanthropists, coming from a cross section of society.

Prominent surgeons of the city and professors are volunteering their services to the hospital.

Besides the RPH, the other police hospital is located in Karachi.

In 2002, under directives of President General Musharraf, the health department was asked to hand over administrative control of the two hospitals to the police department.

Even then the matter remained pending and it was on May 16, 2005 that the control of the hospitals was handed over to police with formation of a Board of Governors under a memorandum of understanding signed by health and police departments.

Police sources said it was envisaged in the MoU that the finance and cooperation department would be requested to transfer budget to police hospitals from the health department in next financial year to actualise the administrative control of the hospitals.

So far it has not been done and the new fiscal year has already started.

During a surprise visit to the police hospital on June 25, 2005, the Sindh chief minister had announced its upgradation with sufficient budget allocations, promotion and absorption of hospital MS in police department.

However, these directives had not been complied with.

The chief minister again visited the hospital early this year to inaugurate its surgical block.

He was appreciative of the construction of building and performance of hospital as he had earlier announced Rs5.5 million for the surgical block scheme.

He also had announced Rs3 million for hospital but the funds were not made available so far.

In 2004, the hospital conducted screening of 6,331 policemen and their family members for hepatitis, of them 5,219 were fully vaccinated against hepatitis B.

About 262 and 492 were found carriers of hepatitis B and C, respectively.

Personnel of the Sindh reserve police, special branch, anti-corruption establishment and members of general public come to hospitals for medication.

“If we want to make the hospital self-sufficient, we need that hospital’s recurring expenditure are borne by provincial government otherwise its is too difficult to ensure all the facilities to people and police personnel”, said a policeman.

The hospital charges only Rs2 for receipt from a patient and the rest of the treatment is free of charge.

It receives patients from present nine districts of two defunct Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas divisions.