Despite a three-day long painful ‘dry spell’, patients, doctors and students suffered alike as the Lahore General Hospital (LGH) administration could only get one water turbine repaired while funds for the other were still in the “bureaucratic pipeline”,
Pakistan Today has learnt.
The city’s major health facility, its emergency wards, operation theatres, labour rooms, hostels and toilets remained without water for three continuous days, putting lives of everyone related to the hospital in jeopardy. Thousands of patients suffered due to water shortage, as doctors kept referring them to other hospitals for three days.
The hospital relies on two turbines, both of which went out of order; one has been repaired while efforts are being made to get money released for the other one. The surgical emergency which receives the major burden of emergency patients was almost deserted because of the same reason.
“It is impossible for us to treat patients without the availability of water because surgical equipment has to be washed, we need to wash our hands, even clean gowns for doctors are not available, not to mention laundry, etc,” an on-duty doctor at the surgical emergency said.
Pregnant women were most affected as the Labour room did not entertain any patients and referred them to other health facilities.
“Since there is no water, no deliveries could take place in these days, while only patients were checked,” a ward-boy guarding the gynaecology ward’s entrance revealed.
Medical students living in hostels related their plight and said that they had to go to the Children Hospital to use the washroom facility, while many female students had been coming to the hospital without even showering, one of the female students added.
LGH MS Dr Hassan said that one of the turbines had been repaired and water supply had been resumed in the afternoon. “I’ve spent an entire day in the secretariat to get finances released for the up gradation of the water turbine, and hopefully it will be done in a couple of days,” he added.
