No Feeding Room for Nursing Mothers in GBPH

 

Mohammed Sajid
Port Blair, Oct 21: Next time you visit G B Pant Hospital, just be careful because every single action in the OPD block of the Hospital is monitored by people sitting somewhere else through CCTV Camera.

Though this a good step to ensure safety and security of the Hospital but installation of CCTV camera infront of Ladies Toilet and near ECG Room have upset female patients.

“Why they need to see who is going inside Ladies Toilet block. We need total privacy and the hospital authorities must understand this,” said a female patient.

Even Nursing mothers are upset because they prefer to feed their baby sitting somewhere in lonely place, many of them totally unaware that they are infact sitting infront of CCTV Cameras and someone can see their every move clearly.

“As per law there should be a separate feeding room for Nursing Mothers. In absence of such rooms Nursing mothers sit anywhere to feed their baby, unaware of the fact their someone may be watching them sitting in some other place,” said another lady patient.
Same is the case of ECG room, where ladies need complete privacy but at the main door of ECG room there is a CCTV Camera.
When questioned the Medical Superintendent of G B Pant Hospital Dr. B G Lall rubbished such reports.

“There is no such CCTV Camera infront of ECG room or ladies toilet,” the MS Said.

However, Andaman Sheekha has photographs to prove that there are CCTV cameras infront of ECG room or ladies toilet, which can be cross checked by anyone.

“These cameras are monitored by only two people, the Director and the Medical Superintendent,” he said.

Regarding separate room for Nursing Mothers he said that as very less number of Nursing Mothers visit G B Pant Hospital no separate room has been earmarked for Nursing Mothers.

“Administration can’t provide separate room for breast feeding as no government hospital in Mainland India has such facility,” Dr. Lall added.

Each Pharmacist deals with nearly 900 patients per day on an average

Mohammed Sajid & Sourab Ch. Das

Port Blair, Oct 20: The G B Pant Hospital, Administration’s lone referral hospital, is witnessing rapid growth. The Hospital is growing in terms of increasing number of equipments, beds, facilities, doctors and also patients. Despite mushrooming of private hospitals and clinics in Port Blair city, the number patients in G B Pant Hospital are increasing every day.

Thousands of patients visit OPD section of G B Pant Hospital to see doctors and after that all these patients land up infront of the lone Pharmacy Counter, which is the toughest part for all patients and their attenders.

Everyday one can see thousands of patients making beeline infornt the Pharmacy counters (One each for gents, ladies, Senior Citizens etc) for hours and hours to make entries in registers and then again for nearly another hour to take medicines.

Patients who come all alone to the hospital are the worst suffers and the long queues, first infront of reception counter for Slips, Secondly infornt of Doctors’ chamber for seeing a doctor, thirdly infront of laboratories for various tests, fourthly for entries in Pharmacy unit and lastly for getting medicines, make the situation worse for them.

Pharmacists working inside the Pharmacy unit are also equally troubled as on an average one Pharmacist has to attend more than 900 patients a day.

Adding the problems now the Directorate of Health Services has released a list containing six names of Pharmacists, directing them to work in Campbell Bay for one month on rotational basis. Shortage of Pharmacists is said to be the reason behind this order.

Two Regular pharmacists have been posted in DHS office as Drug Inspectors. Often with VVIPs one Pharmacist is sent on duty and one Pharmacist is posted in night shift, which further puts the pressure on the OPD Pharmacy unit.

Due to shortage of Pharmacists opening of another Pharmacy Counter has become impossible, which means that in coming future too, Islanders will have to suffer horribly, while getting medicines from GB Pant Hospital’s OPD block.

When Andaman Sheekha contacted Dr. B.G.Lal, Medical Superintendent of G B Pant Hospital regarding in this matter, he said that, when the hospital was constructed at that time the population of these Islands was less.

“From that period there is sharp increase in population, which was not expected by the concerned authorities before the construction of the G.B.Pant Hospital,” Dr. Lal said.

The Medical Superintendent accepted that with only counter for female and one for male it has now become too much difficult to deal with such a large number of patients.

“We are now planning to open two more pharmacy counters, one each for gents and ladies. Within this week we are going to start these counters,” the MS said.

Meanwhile he added that a proposal has been send to administration for hiring four to six pharmacists on contract basis to deal with shortage of Pharmacists.

Hope these words are kept and more counters are opened for Ladies, Gents as well as Senior Citizens.