KIHD faces multiple problems to treat cardiac patients

Karachi:The cardiac emergency and OPD patients of Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases (KIHD) has been facing trouble due to lack of facilities.

An administrative official at KIHD said that the hospital had been facing acute shortage of medicines since the last eight years while equipment like angiography machines, Echo machines, ECG machines and X-ray machine were lying out of order. He said medicines were even not available for patients with cardiac emergencies.

Around 200 patients are brought to emergency department of the healthcare for treatment but attendants of patients are being advised by doctors to purchase injections, drips and other life-saving medicines from specific private medical stores.

He said city’s second largest cardiac care health facility run by Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) was facing acute financial crisis since several years and hospital administration was unable to provide treatment facilities to visiting patients with cardiovascular diseases. He said needy patients had to purchase costly medicines to save lives of their dear ones from medical stores.

The hospital urgently needs four new echo-machines, ICU and CCU equipment to improve patients care in the institution. He said existing echo-machines were very old and outdated in healthcare, therefore, there was need of new echo-machines, ECG and angiography machines.

He said liabilities costs were increasing day by day in the hospital which was putting extra-burden on the poor patients. Senior Director Health and Medical Services Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Dr Birbal Genani was not available for comments.