A large number of renal failure patients on Sunday complained of experiencing routine delays in getting access to hemodialysis at the dialysis center of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) due to limited beds and shortage of staff.
“Timing of dialysis is important as delay causes severe medical complications for end-stage renal failure patients and even sometimes doctors remained unable to avoid from their collapse,” they said.
According to them, there was also an issue of obtaining arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) or grafts (AVG) which might lead to long-term negative consequences as such services are unavailable at the PIMS and serious patients have to go for a private hospitals for this procedure on heavy charges.
The patients also complained about non-observance of treatment methodologies, staff’s rude attitude and shortage of senior doctors at the dialysis center.
They demanded of the authorities concerned to improve services at the PIMS Dialysis Centre with addition of doctors, paramedical staff and beds along with dialysis machines.
Ali Amaar, an attendant, said many patients who visited the hospital from far-flung areas had to wait for hours in long queues outside the centre for getting time for dialysis, where a limited place for waiting had been arranged for them.
He said due to limited beds and dialysis machines, a large number of patients had to return home without dialysis at the end of the day, despite waiting for hours in long queues.
“Mostly patients are asked to return the next day by the department administration, which could prove to be fatal for serious kidney failure patients, who visit the hospital from remote areas,” he said.
A patient Muhammad Ali said only limited beds were available in the dialysis centre and Nephrology Ward, where not only staff was limited, but there was acute shortage of medicines.
He asked to take notice of frequent absence of senior doctors and non-observance of duty-roster by medical and non-medical staff at Nephrology Ward and dialysis centre.—APP
