Sonepur: Surgical services at the Subarnapur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) have come to a standstill due to the absence of a trained anaesthesiologist, leaving patients with no choice but to seek costly treatment at private nursing homes.
Currently, the hospital is offering only outpatient department (OPD) services, while surgeries across several departments—including obstetrics, orthopaedics, ophthalmology, and ENT—have been suspended. The situation has sparked widespread resentment among local residents, who allege that the administration has failed to address the crisis. Subarnapur DHH boasts a 50-bed maternity and child health centre equipped with modern facilities and a newly constructed seven-storey building inaugurated in February 2024. However, the structure, built at a cost exceeding Rs 100 crore, has been termed by locals as an “empty showpiece” due to the lack of functional healthcare services.
Until recently, Dr Subas Panda was the hospital’s only trained anaesthesiologist. He also provided anaesthesia support for surgeries in various departments after the inauguration of the new building. However, Dr Panda was transferred to Birmaharajpur Subdivisional Hospital as superintendent and relieved from duty October 22. Since his departure, even Caesarean sections at the maternity ward have been suspended. “Earlier, we conducted over 100 Caesarean deliveries in September and more than 35 in October. But since Dr Panda’s transfer, all surgical deliveries have stopped,” a hospital source said. Patients requiring surgery are now being referred to private nursing homes, where government doctors allegedly perform procedures for additional income. This arrangement, residents claim, is enriching private operators while burdening poor patients financially and emotionally.
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Another trained anaesthesiologist, Dr Rabi Panda, reportedly continues to draw his salary from Subarnapur but has been posted at the Dunguripali Community Health Centre since 2023 under government orders. Local citizens have demanded his immediate redeployment to the DHH, but no administrative or political effort has yet been made to facilitate his transfer. Superintendent of the DHH, Dr Durgadatta Dash, admitted that the transfer of Dr Subas Panda has created difficulties. “We have directed him to visit the hospital every Monday and Tuesday to assist in surgeries. Meanwhile, Dr Rabi Panda remains posted in Dunguripali. The government can decide on his reassignment if it wishes,” Dr Dash said. As the deadlock continues, poor patients across Subarnapur district are being denied essential surgical care—a situation that residents say highlights a growing gap between infrastructure development and actual healthcare delivery.
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