A group of patients pointed out that due to the overcrowding in the Medical Ward Complex at the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital, two patients had to be treated in one bed due to the epidemic situation.
The hospital staff said that the situation had arisen due to patients visiting wards 17-18 and 19 of the physical illness ward complex for treatment of various ailments over the past few days.
At a time when the Covid 19 virus was spreading, we observed that social isolation had to be maintained, but due to the high congestion, two patients had to be confined to one bed.
Due to this situation, some patients had refused to seek treatment and had been discharged from the hospital.
One patient commented: I came to the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital for treatment due to an illness. While receiving treatment, the number of patients increased unimaginably. I had to put another patient in the bed where one patient was. So I refused treatment and came home.
Because with the corona virus we are told to stay two meters apart but having two beds does not mean a gap of two centimeters. There were patients who underwent PCR tests in these wards. Patients are in amazing discomfort.
This situation has arisen due to the negligence of the authorities. If the hospital authorities had taken the necessary steps to increase the number of wards by two or three, there would not have been such a congestion today. He said patients come and sit in chairs for 10-12 hours and moan.
Health staff working in several wards said the condition had been a problem for years. They said the lack of proper management had led to the situation. We have brains but we can’t do anything because we don’t have the power. Corona patients are also coming.
But we can not leave out any patients. We treat them too .We do this when there is a risk to the lives of our staff. If the authorities do not open their eyes, patients will be left helpless every day. “Everybody has to face a big risk in the future,” they said.