Renovation works to increase capacity of the 100-bed district hospital in Narail is completed lack of lifts are yet to be installed after eight years.
The existing facility continues to operate under severe strain, serving nearly four times more patients than its capacity each day.
Just beside the old hospital, the structure of a nine-storey building exists but without the installation of its lift system, the prospects of improved healthcare services remain uncertain.
Narail Sadar Hospital Superintendent Md Abdul Gaffar stated that the current hospital is delivering services to almost four times its intended capacity with limited staff and resources.
“Construction of the new building is complete, patient wards will be located on the fourth floor and above, making it impossible to operate the hospital without functioning lifts,” Gaffar said.
Only the Public Works Department can confirm when the lift issue will be resolved and the building handed over,” he added.
Meanwhile, Executive Engineer of the district Public Works Department, Md Sarowar Hossain, said the hospital could not be handed over in time due to unfinished lift installation.
Four 1,250-kg passenger-cum-bed lifts have been submitted to the Planning Commission for DPP approval through the Ministry of Health.
He expressed hope that approval would come within the next three to four months, after which lift installation could be completed and the building handed over.
Though the project deadline has long expired, the health department still has no clear timeline for handover or inauguration of the new facility.
A visit to the hospital reveals that corridors, staircases, and every available corner are overcrowded with patients and their attendants, which has become a daily reality at Narail’s only district hospital.
Relatives of patients say they are forced to spread mats and sheets on floors, corridors, and staircases, with at least 250 attendants staying inside the hospital at any given time.
Amid cold weather and fears of infection, they endure these conditions in hopes of receiving better treatment.
Due to shortages of specialist doctors, limited surgical services, and poor infrastructure, many patients are compelled to seek treatment elsewhere within one or two days.
They are frequently transferred to Jasore’s 250-bed hospital, Khulna Medical College Hospital, or hospitals in Dhaka.
According to the district Public Works Department, the Development Project Proposal (DPP) for constructing the main hospital building, service building, and doctors’ dormitory was approved in 2017.
In June 2018, eight contracting firms began work on the proposed eight-storey building, with a total budget of Tk61.58 crore. Additionally, under World Bank funding, Tk5.77 crore was allocated for a 10-bed ICU on the 9th floor.
Despite three deadline extensions, the project could not be handed over by June last year due to design complications related to the hospital’s lift system.
When asked how soon the hospital could begin operations after handover, Abdul Gaffar noted that staffing and other essential preparations would still be required.
With ministry support, it may take an additionalone to one- and-a-half-year after handover to make the facility fully operational.
Narail’s district hospital was last upgraded from 50 beds to 100 beds in 2007.
