Maa-Shishu Hospital an example of better service

The Maa-Shishu O General Hospital building complex at Agrabad. PHOTO: STAR

To contribute more to the healthcare services, it began treatment of general people last year and in its latest venture, the hospital management is going to set up a full-fledged nursing institute and medical college, sources said.

The hospital is located at the city centre of Agrabad.

Run under a 26-member committee, the hospital provides a wide range of services, including paediatric medicine, paediatric surgery, Ear-Nose-Throat (ENT), neonatal, asthma, child growth, family planning and EPI services from the very beginning.

Later, medicine, gynaecology, orthopedic surgery, general surgery and dental medicine were included in the list of services.

At present the three-storey hospital complex established on nearly five acres of land, has 250 beds, including 20 cabins, for in-door patients. Besides, it offers treatment to over 200 patients at its out-door department from 8:00am to 2:30pm everyday.

A 345-member team comprising doctors, nurses and staffs is offering round-the-clock service at the hospital. Some of them work voluntarily.

Its new addition is a laparoscope's machine.

After installation of the machine, four successful surgeries were conducted by Associate Professor Dr Jafrul Hannan Liton.

The hospital also has a modern laboratory enriched with medical apparatus like electrolytes, lab rotator and hot-air machine for better services.

The fund to run the hospital is raised through donations by the generous and philanthropic personalities and some pharmaceuticals and multinational companies.

Anybody can become a life member of the hospital donating a bed for Tk 1 lakh.

Besides, there is a zakat fund to meet the expenses of the hospital.

"We help poor Muslim patients from the zakat fund while expenditure of the patients from other communities is met from the hospital fund," said Dr Anzuman Ara Islam, secretary general of the hospital executive committee.

Mohsin Hossain, an attendant of a patient who came from remote Fatikchhari upazilas, said "I came here as I heard of its better service."

"And in reality, I found the service far better than what I expected from such a charitable hospital," Mohsin said.

"The hospital is very neat and clean and the doctors and nurses also sincere to take care of the patients," said a man whose wife was undergoing an operation in the labour room.

"My first baby was also born here," he added.

Mohammed Haider Ali, an out-door patient, said the patients who are aware of the service offered at Maa-Shishu O General Hospital usually will avoid other public hospitals for better treatment.

The hospital executive committee also runs Maa O Shishu Hospital Nursing Institute with 69 students. Twenty students are enrolled in the institute every year.

"We are planning to set up Maa-Shishu O General Hospital Medical College and a proposal in this regard is now awaiting approval by the Prime Minister's office," said Professor ASM Fazlul Karim, president of the hospital executive committee.