Md. Abdul Qaiyum, Moulvibazar

Acute staff shortages, including seven vacant Senior Consultant posts, have severely disrupted healthcare services at the Moulvibazar 250-Bed General Hospital, forcing staff to routinely refer complex cases to Sylhet.

As the largest government health facility in the expatriate-dominated district, the hospital serves as the primary healthcare lifeline for nearly 2.1 million residents across seven upazilas. Despite severe limitations, the outpatient department treats at least 2,000 patients daily, most of whom belong to marginal communities.

Key specialist posts—including Senior Consultants in Dermatology and Venereology, Cardiology, Ophthalmology, Gynecology, Pediatrics, and ENT—have been lying vacant for a prolonged period. Assignments across various departments remain stalled, while shortages of nurses and outsourcing personnel further compound the crisis.

Due to inadequate specialist coverage in crucial areas like anesthesiology, routine and necessary surgeries are frequently delayed or suspended, compelling doctors to transfer critically ill patients to the MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital in Sylhet. Patients and relatives reported waiting in long queues for hours without receiving desired care before being referred elsewhere.

According to hospital sources, only 40 doctors are currently working against 84 sanctioned positions, leaving 44 posts vacant. Out of 187 sanctioned nursing posts, 171 are filled. Overall, against a total approved manpower of 409, only 306 personnel are currently stationed, leaving 103 positions unfilled.

Initially established as a 50-bed hospital in 1984, the facility was upgraded to 100 beds in 2003. Construction of a new building began in 2006 through the initiative of former Finance and Planning Minister M. Saifur Rahman, leading to its expansion to 250 beds in 2012.

District residents have long campaigned domestically and abroad for upgrading the facility to a full-fledged medical college, organizing rallies, human chains, and mass signature drives.

To address the growing patient volume, Hospital Superintendent Dr. Pronoy Kanti Das sent a formal letter to the Secretary of the Health Services Division on January 7, 2025, requesting the hospital be upgraded from 250 beds to 500 beds.

The letter noted that despite the presence of a government medical college in neighboring Habiganj, patients from across Moulvibazar's seven upazilas and nearby areas flood the 250-bed hospital, putting immense strain on limited staff. The letter urged the ministry to expand infrastructure, sanction staff for key posts, and activate 14 new specialized units, including CCU, ICU, Cardiology, Neurology, Nephrology, Urology, and Neonatology. However, no significant progress has been made over the past year.

Dr. Abdul Hadi Shahin, Member Secretary of Doctors Association of Bangladesh (DAB) Moulvibazar district unit, emphasized that remaining doctors must work with utmost sincerity to serve impoverished patients while keeping middlemen and clinic agents out of hospital premises.

Former Mayor of Moulvibazar Municipality and Convener of District BNP Fayzul Karim Mayun acknowledged that local representatives should have prioritized addressing the immediate staffing and equipment shortages of the 250-bed hospital alongside demands for a medical college.

Hospital Superintendent Dr. Pronoy Kanti Das reiterated that manpower shortages remain the greatest barrier to providing adequate care, noting that setting up operational ICU and CCU facilities is essential to restoring proper healthcare delivery at the institution.