KATHMANDU, July 28: Although the construction of a new 100-bed building of the country's old hospital, Bir Hospital, was completed two weeks ago, it has not come into operation in a lack of staffers to run the building and render the services. At the 130th anniversary of Bir Hospital, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health and Population Upendra Yadav underscored the need for the Bir Hospital to provide more effective services in the future.
Stating that new health policy was put in place to ensure the right to health as enshrined in the new constitution, he reiterated," It is imperative that the Hospital needs to expand its services for the medical and health sector." Likewise, Hospital's Director Dr Kedar Century said, " Although the Japanese-aided building is ready, in lack of adequate human resources such as doctors, nurses and lab assistants, the new building has been rendered unused." He, however, did not mention how many staffers the hospital needed. The hospital which started its service with a 15-bed building currently is expanded to a 460-bed capacity.
The hospital administration has brought the issues relating to human resources crunch to the Ministry of Health and Population but to no avail, said Century. A total of 44,534 patients availed emergency services while 375,000 were admitted under the indoor patient department, 13,159 were admitted in general wards and 6,877 surgeries were performed in the last fiscal year 2018/19, according to him.
Similarly, a total of 8,908 senior citizens were benefitted with the free-of-cost treatment while 14 successful cases of kidney transplant were recorded in the last fiscal year. The hospital has not been able to provide gynecologist and pediatrician services yet. Similarly, Secretary at the Ministry of Health and Population Ram Prasad Thapaliya shared that the Ministry would take a decision on human resources management for the 17 hospitals under the Ministry.