RAWALPINDI: The administration of District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital has requested the Punjab government to release the Rs300 million allocated for the upgrading of the hospital.
A senior DHQ Hospital officer told Dawn the hospital needs to renovate its building and update equipment.
He said the previous provincial government had allocated Rs300 million in the 2017-18 budget and released Rs8.3 million for making the PC-1 of the project. He said the PC-1 had been made and sent to the government but the funds are yet to be released.
Under the project, the hospital building will be renovated over the course of two years for Rs170 million and the rest of the funds will be used to purchase machinery.
He said six kanals of government land in Kashmir Bazaar, adjacent to the hospital will be used to construct an extension. The old building is dilapidated but will not be demolished. It will instead be renovated and used for patient rooms and wards, he said.
The official said the new block will contain some new departments and the emergency department will be improved as well.
The gynae ward has to be extended as well, he said, and that currently, two patients have to share a bed due to shortage of beds and space in the ward. A trauma centre is also needed in the hospital.
DHQ Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Khalid Randhawa said the government had promised to include the project in the annual development program of 2018-19 and that it will release the funds as a formal request has been sent.
He said the new children’s ward will be open to the public from Monday, Oct 29 onwards as the construction work has been completed and the equipments installed.
A new building had been constructed for the Paediatric Ward last year but it did not have machinery and equipment. However, it is ready now that the funds have been received, he said.
Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2018
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