lok Nayak Hospital, one of the most busy hospitals in the national capital has undergone a qualitative change with the augmentation of its pharmacy wing and medical services. The hospital is soon going to operationalise the 150 bed Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and a new emergency services wing.
There is a perceptible change in the functioning of the hospital after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led Government decided to provide free medicines in the city hospitals.
Hospital officials said that they have adequate supply of medicines and the system has been streamlined to facilitate this scheme. Hygiene and medical care in the out patients department (OPD) and in the other wings of the hospital has been upgraded. On average lok Nayak hospital caters to seven to eight thousand patients on daily basis and majority of them come from the walled city area.
The Pioneer spoke to patients and their relatives who appeared more than satisfies with the upgradation of medical services and the hygiene in the hospital. They did demand installation of more MRI machines and enough radiologists for speedy treatment. Adul Farooq, a resident of Mori Gate in North Delhi said that as there is only one MRI machine hospital, we have to wait for long hours. Even more radiologists should be employed as that would reduce the waiting time period of patients like him.
There were some patients who bought medicines from outsider since the queue at the pharmacy was pretty long. However for Faheena, (32) a resident of nearby Turkman Gate, free medicine scheme is the best thing for her as she got medicine every time she came to the hospital for the treatment of her son. “I get free medicines without any hitch. My three year old son is suffering from viral infection and chronic disease for which I regularly visit this hospital,” said Faheena
When contacted the Additional Medical Superintendent (AMS) Dr Sunil Arora said, “There can be few problems to the patients to get the free medicine as we have staff crunch. We need more pharmacists to deal with the patients rush. The patient’s footfall is increasing with every passing day. On average hospital receives about 7000 patients in the OPD alone. We have sent communication to the government for increasing the number of staffers”, he said.
When asked about the maintenances of hygiene and cleanliness, Dr Arora said that it is an ongoing process and the hospital administration is revamping the existing infrastructure. “We are coming up with 150 bed ICU and new emergency block. The new facility will help patients who need critical medical care”, he added.