Srinagar, Mar 13: Residents of Gurez in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district continue to suffer due to the absence of adequate healthcare facilities, exposing them to the risk of fatalities during emergencies.
The Gurez Valley, having a population of 40,000 people and spread over 29 villages, has one Community Health Centre (CHC) in Dawar and Primary Health Centres (PHCs), all facing government neglect for years.
Arshid Ahmad, a resident of Gurez said, “Last week, there was a 35-year-old man who suffered a bleeding disorder and he could not be airlifted for days due to bad weather. He faced sudden excessive bleeding. He was admitted to PHC Bagtoor. Many people had then gathered there to donate blood but there were no transfusion facilities and the allied equipment needed. He was kept there for five days and could not be airlifted due to the bad weather conditions.”
The young man was later evacuated in a chopper after four days and was admitted to a Srinagar hospital for treatment. He, however, succumbed during surgery. “Had he been evacuated promptly and taken to the hospital, his life could have been saved,” Arshid said.
Located 86 km from district headquarters Bandipora, Gurez remains cut off from the rest of the valley for six months each year due to heavy snowfall, multiplying hardships and bringing life to a standstill.
The main health facility in Gurez is CHC Dawar, as per Arshid, which has no gynaecologist, no paediatrician and no dentist and people suffer the most due to the poor facilities and manpower. For minor ailments, patients are asked to visit Bandipora and Srinagar hospitals for treatment, he said.
Mushtaq Ahmad, a resident said that for pregnant women awaiting deliveries during winter, the situation exacerbates and they relocate to Bandipora or Srinagar, which is unaffordable for poor patients. “During winter months, the attendants of pregnant women have to shift to Srinagar and Bandipora and take rented rooms for their stay until delivery,” he said
In November last year, the Health Department Kashmir ordered deputing at least eight gynaecologists to Gurez during winter till April but the locals said the doctors did not arrive at Gurez.
Although the district administration operates the helicopter service for emergencies ferrying people between Gurez and Bandipora during winter, locals said the permanent solution to the issue is the long pending demand for a tunnel that will ease their suffering.
On the other side, the hospitals in Gurez also face a shortage of manpower. These hospitals include CHC Dawar, PHC Sheikpora Tulial, PHC Badugam, NTPHC Bagtoor, NTPHC Barnal, NTPHC Gujran and MAC Badwan Gurez.
Similarly, six posts of medical officers are vacant NTPHC Bagtoor, NTPHC Barnai, NTPHC Gujran, NTPHC Kilshey, NTPHC Wanpora and NTPHC Kamzalwan.
At PHC Sheikpora, the posts of supervisory pharmacist and junior assistant are lying vacant while at PHC Badugam, the posts of community health officer, supervisory pharmacist, health educator and junior assistant are lying vacant. At NPHCs of Bagtoor, Barnal, Gujran and MAC Badwan, the posts of senior pharmacists are lying vacant.
Director Health Services Kashmir, Dr Mushtaq Ahmad Rather said there is a gynaecologist stationed at Gurez and another comes there on a rotational basis. “The gynae services are available round the clock. We provide better healthcare services to the people,” he said.
Chief Medical Officer, Bandipora, Dr Rafi Ahmad said blood transfusion is a huge facility and they face power voltage issues in Gurez due to which they are unable to run the blood bank. “We are currently using the generator for electricity and the voltage is low,” he said.
Regarding the shortage of gynaecologists, the CMO said, “Doctors face issues in transporting there. They remain there on a rotation basis.”
