Srinagar, May 13 (KNO): Hundreds of patients were forced to wait in long queues for hours at District Hospital Shopian on Wednesday due to the absence of staff at registration and ticket counters, causing severe inconvenience to patients and attendants.
From early morning hours, the hospital premises remained overcrowded as patients from different parts of Shopian and adjoining areas gathered for medical consultations and treatment.
Several patients alleged that despite repeated complaints regarding the functioning of ticket counters and the shortage of manpower, authorities have failed to take corrective measures, leaving patients to suffer regularly.
Waqar Ahmad, who accompanied his ailing mother to the hospital, said they reached the facility around 8:00 AM, hoping to receive timely treatment, but remained stranded for nearly two hours due to the non-functional ticket counter.
"My mother was suffering from severe body pain and needed immediate medical attention. We kept standing in the queue helplessly while no staff member was available at the counter. There were hundreds of patients waiting anxiously, including elderly people who had no place to sit," he said.
Waqar said the ground situation at the hospital was contrary to claims of improved healthcare facilities often highlighted by the administration. "People come to the hospital with hope, but they are made to suffer even before meeting a doctor. Patients are being forced to wait endlessly just to obtain a registration ticket. This kind of negligence can become dangerous for sick and elderly patients," he added.
Attendants said tempers flared repeatedly in overcrowded queues as frustration mounted among waiting patients, with some alleging that arguments broke out between people due to delays and disorder in the registration area. Many patients expressed concern that such delays could prove risky, particularly for those suffering from fever, breathing complications, severe pain, or other urgent health issues.
Locals said the problem has persisted for a long time and accused authorities of failing to improve hospital functioning despite public grievances being raised on several occasions. Witnesses said long queues extended across the registration section while several patients waited anxiously for their turn, with many doctors inside OPDs unable to attend patients on time as registrations had not been completed.
Patients, attendants, and locals have demanded immediate intervention of Health Minister Sakeena Itoo in this regard.
Officials, however, said the issue rose due to a shortage of manpower, saying insufficient staff strength was making it difficult to manage heavy patient inflow efficiently. They said they have already informed higher-ups and are hopeful that necessary steps will be taken at the earliest—(KNO)