Hospitals face staff shortages as pro-AL doctors stay away

Hospitals across Bangladesh are experiencing significant staff shortages as doctors and healthcare workers affiliated with the Awami League avoid work due to fears of violence following the party's fall from power.

Many hospitals are operating with only half of their usual staff, particularly in outpatient departments. However, hospital authorities and doctors are hopeful that doctor attendance will increase starting Saturday (10 August), following the formation of the interim government last night.

The Directorate General of Health Services tracks daily doctor attendance on a real-time dashboard. On Tuesday (6 August), the dashboard was down, so the exact number of absent doctors was not available. Reports from various government hospitals suggest that over 50% of doctors were absent.

At Dhaka Medical College Hospital's outpatient medicine department, only four doctors were on duty on Thursday (8 August).

A doctor from the department said, "Currently, doctors not affiliated with any political party are fulfilling their duties. Many doctors, including professors and associate professors, are not coming to work. Our department's absentee rate is around 40-50%.

"Doctors aligned with the Awami League are staying away due to fears of attacks from opposition supporters. All departments are experiencing a shortage of doctors, but we hope things will improve after the formation of the interim government tonight [8 August]."

At the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, the only specialised heart hospital in the country, Awami League-affiliated doctors are also absent, increasing the workload for those who are present.

Similarly, many senior doctors known to support the Awami League are absent from the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation.

At Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), key figures like the vice-chancellor, pro-vice-chancellor, registrar, and department heads have been absent since the fall of the government. However, the hospital director noted a slight improvement in the situation on Thursday.

Brig Gen Rezaur Rahman, director (Hospital) at BSMMU, told The Business Standard that staff attendance was much better on Thursday than in recent days.

He said, "While we haven't reached 100% attendance, the situation has improved significantly. All our operating theatres were open, and there were enough patients in the outpatient departments. We expect even better attendance from doctors on Saturday.

"Many rooms in the administrative building were open, and some officials, including the vice-chancellor, worked from home. The situation is under control, and no patients have been turned away."

The situation is similar at hospitals outside Dhaka. Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH), a major facility in northern Bangladesh, treats patients from several districts. After the clashes on 5 August, nearly a hundred students were treated there.

Since the fall of the government, many Awami League-affiliated doctors, nurses, and officials at RMCH have stopped coming to work. Additionally, many doctors from minority communities are also absent.

Dr Shankar K Biswas, in charge of the emergency department at RMCH, said that despite staff shortage, patient care has not been significantly affected.

He said, "We are currently seeing about half the usual number of patients. Normally, we admit 1,200 to 1,400 patients daily, but in the last 24 hours, only 703 were admitted. With fewer patients, we are managing care without issues.

"New intern doctors who joined two weeks ago are helping out, and lab, pathology, and other services are operating as usual."

However, unrest has been reported at Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital since the fall of the government, affecting both medical services and administrative activities.

On the day Hasina announced her resignation, vandals damaged offices, including those of the director and deputy director, as well as the Bangabandhu Corner.

Since then, several high-ranking officials have avoided the hospital out of fear. Many doctors, especially those affiliated with the Awami League, have also stayed away, further affecting medical services and administration.

A relative of a patient, Saidul Islam, said that fewer doctors are available, making it hard to get necessary medical care. He also noted that the supply of free medicines from the hospital has decreased.

Attempts to reach Brig Gen Mahbubul Haque Bhuiyan, director of Osmani Medical College Hospital, were unsuccessful.

In contrast, Dr Abdul Wadud, deputy director of Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College and Hospital in Bogura, said the political situation has not caused a crisis at their facility.

"We are actually providing more services. We currently have at least 125 injured students admitted, and they are receiving very careful medical attention," he added.

[TBS Rajshahi Correspondent Bulbul Habib, Sylhet Correspondent Debashis Debu, and North Bengal Bureau Chief Khorshed Alam contributed to the report.]