Moulvibazar Hospital; Dialysis services near closure amid fund crisis

The dialysis unit at the 250-bed Moulvibazar General Hospital is on the verge of a complete shutdown due to a severe funding crisis.

Hospital authorities said no new patients have been admitted for dialysis over the past month, while limited services for 15 existing patients may also cease by the end of September unless urgent government funding is secured.

Lower and middle-income patients, who depend on the hospital for affordable, life-saving treatment, are the worst affected. They are now being forced to seek dialysis at private facilities that charge significantly higher fees.

"Dialysis has to be done twice a week. Private hospitals charge Tk 3,500 per session. It is impossible to bear this cost regularly," said kidney patient Lokman Ahmed, who previously received treatment at the hospital.

The dialysis unit has 17 machines, 15 of which are currently operational. Each patient is offered a package of 48 sessions at a subsidised rate of Tk 20,000, bringing the per-session cost to around Tk 400. The government bears the rest.

To operate at regular capacity -- approximately 300 sessions per month -- an annual allocation of about Tk 1 crore is required, officials said. But without fresh funding, the hospital has been forced to scale back operations.

"We are still providing services to a few old patients, but no new admissions have been made in the past month," said Dr Pranoy Kanti Das, superintendent of Moulvibazar General Hospital.

He said, "Every year we get allocation in July but last year we did not get it. Still, we have managed for the last one year somehow with other budgets of pathology. But now if we do not get allocation, it will not be possible to run it anymore."

"We have written to the health ministry requesting an allocation of Tk 1 crore to keep the service running for the next year. We hope the fund will arrive before services are fully suspended."

Relatives of patients expressed frustration and anxiety, saying they have no choice but to turn to expensive private providers or travel long distances to Sylhet city for treatment, incurring additional costs.

"I had to bring my patient from Sylhet and admit them to a private hospital in Moulvibazar. The cost is very high. I don't know how long I can manage this," said Akhlaq Hossain, a relative of a patient.

Contacted, Deputy Commissioner Md Israil Hossain said steps are being taken to prevent a shutdown. "We have sent a letter to the health secretary seeking an allocation of Tk 1 crore. We are taking maximum efforts to keep the dialysis service running," he said.