PESHAWAR, Feb 14: The Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Drosh, established in 1929, faces an acute shortage of doctors and paramedical staff and equipment.

The status of the hospital is the same when the total population of Chitral was only 450 as against today's 65,000.

The hospital is the only hope for patients coming from Arundu and Drosh Tehsils as well as Jalalabad and other places in the adjacent Afghanistan.

There are only five doctors while posts of seven medical officers and two SMOs are vacant. The posts of gynaecologist, surgical specialist, physician and child specialist are also lying vacant for a long time.

There is no blood bank at the hospital whose OPD is visited by 250 patients daily.

The operation theatre lacks new equipment. As there is no anaesthetist for the operation theatre, an anaesthetic technician takes care of the job.

There is no operation table in its OT. The dental section also lacks proper facilities and the hydraulic system needs to be replaced as it is out of order.-APP