THE incessant load-shedding that has haunted Bindura since 2022 has rendered non-
functional particularly the theatres, X-ray as well as the Physio room at Bindura Provincial
Hospital.
Patients from different areas of the province are at risk while they queue for medication
because of delayed services at the hospital due to power shortages.
In the absence of electricity, hacksaws which are specifically meant for cutting plastic, steel
and wooden materials are being used, for example, to remove plaster casts from parents with
broken bones.
Sekai Bhauti (38), confirmed that she visited the hospital last week Friday and came across a
four-year-old boy, who sustained a small cut on his hand during the process of removing his
plaster.
"To make matters worse, the hand has not healed yet, and the parent of the child was told to
return to the hospital when there is electricity so that a new plaster cast would be put," she
added.
This is because the electrical saws which are used in the plaster rooms are not working
because of the absence of power outages.
A hospital insider, who asked for anonymity also confirmed that the challenges that hit the
hospital were arising because the hospital has no money to cater for daily fuel charges to
sustain generators that supply power to all laboratories, theatres, plaster room, and the X-ray
room.
Bhauti added that load-shedding struck the hospital the moment she was just entering into the
X-ray room last Friday resulting in the nurses advising her to come back for the X-ray on
another day when electricity would be available.
Currently, the provincial hospital is referring patients to run their x-rays at a private medical
centre and then return to the hospital for doctor's examination.
However, the insider also alleged that many patients were dying while in queues while
waiting to be attended. There was no immediate independent verification of the allegation,
and hospital officials were not readily available for comment.
Comments are closed.