DHANGADHI: Despite having 19 government quotas for doctors, Mahakali Zonal Hospital in Kanchanpur has been without the health professionals for quite long time now. The patients have been deprived of health services at the hospital after acting Medical Superintendent Dr Khagendra Bhatta left for Kathmandu for a training.

The hospital source, however, claimed that Dr Bhatta had left for Kathmandu seeking transfer for he was drawn into controversy frequently in the hospital. Earlier, Dr Arjun Prasad Shrestha too had quit the hospital on pretext of leave. Meanwhile, Dr Rambihari Chaudhari, who was appointed by the Hospital Development Committee, has taken the responsibility of medical superintendent.

Two more doctors apart

from Chaudhari have been working in the hospital on the quotas provided by the development committee.

However, patients are compelled to go to India for treatment for the Zonal hospital always has crisis of doctors since establishment. Ramesh Bhatta, who is in the hospital for the last two days, seemed hopeless for there was no doctor to take care of his wife, an expecting mother.

Likewise, emergency, laboratory, x-ray, administration and indoor sections have been hit hard too due to human resource crunch. Though numbers of malaria, common fever, and diarrhoea patients have been growing with the advent of summer, we have no enough manpower, staff nurse Kishori Shrestha said.

Further, appointment of two chairmen in Mahakali Zonal Hospital Development Committee due to Health Ministry’s irresponsibility and lack of clear policy has added insult to injury. Unified CPN-Maoist had appointed Khadak Basnet as the chairman but the incumbent government later handed over the responsibility to Bikramsingh Dhami. Locals opine that appointment of persons in the post of chairman from outside the medical sector and different clashing orders from the duo have affected services and development of the hospital.