The state capital can boast of having a good network of 102 health institutions manned by qualified doctors, but the biggest contradiction is that a majority of these institutions lack basic infrastructure. So ill-equipped are they, that not more than a handful of them can handle even deliveries.
This has led to a peculiar situation where four major maternity hospitals – Niloufer, Gandhi, Sultan Bazar and Nayapul – facilitate nearly 67 per cent of the deliveries that take place in the city.
Of the 31,000 deliveries in all government institutions this year, nearly 21,000 took place in these four hospitals, official statistics say. The remaining deliveries took place in 98 other government institutions which include Urban Health Posts (UHPs).
A very disturbing fact is that not a single delivery was handled in over 50 health posts across the city. These UHPs are frequented mainly by the poor. “Hyderabad is the only district where trained doctors are unutilised due to lack of basic infrastructure,” rues an official.
Dearth of equipment like labour tables, emergency lights, electricity, water or space in most health posts, has incapacitated them, despite the presence of qualified gynaecologists. Moreover, there is a dearth of round-the-clock health staff to take care of emergency deliveries. “We haven't performed a single delivery till date. There is no power supply or water supply in the operation theatre. This centre is absolutely ill-equipped to take up deliveries,” pointed out Dr. Sheema Rehman of the UHP at Banjara Hills. The condition in over 50 other UHPs across the city including Aman Nagar, Lalapet, Mettuguda, Bandlaguda, Charminar, Tilak Nagar, Nampally and Ameerpet among several others is similar. They lack the facility to even perform haemoglobin tests.
The scene at Film Nagar centre is even more pathetic. As drainage water was seeping into the building, the post had to be shifted to a rented house. “There is barely any room for out-patient consultation here. It is impossible to perform deliveries,” said Dr. Sudha of the Film Nagar post.
While 15 UHPs, which are round-the-clock service centres, and five maternity centres facilitate around 25 deliveries a month; the Nayapul hospital performs about 1200; Sultan Bazar hospital over 1000, Niloufer about 550 and Gandhi hospital conducts over 650 deliveries every month. “Majority of the cases we get are referral cases as the UHPs cannot even handle normal deliveries, let alone caesarean sections,” said A. Srinivasa Rao of the GMH in Nayapul.
Health department officials say they are aware of the issue and that efforts are underway to release funds for improving infrastructure in UHPs.
