Home ›› 26 May 2022 ›› Front
Growing number of neurology patients is putting intense pressure on the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital (NINH) in Dhaka’s Agargaon to take the advantage of low cost and modern medical treatment.
The 450-bed hospital is treating 1,500 patients on average every day, said the hospital authorities.
Another building is under construction to add 500 more beds to the hospital. Once completed, the 950-bed hospital will be the largest neurology hospital in the world, the doctors claimed.
Doctors and hospital staff say even a decade ago only the upper classes of society could afford such treatment abroad. Other public or private hospitals in Bangladesh have neurological treatment facilities. But the patients cannot receive quality treatment and afford the high cost.
This is why this hospital is always abuzz with so many patients, they said.
Apart from this, the number of patients is increasing due to accidents all over the country and various kinds of environmental impacts.
In many cases, doctors are sending patients to the NINH with very common problems putting pressure on the hospital.
Outdoor advice fee is only Tk10
If one wants only advice from doctors at the NINH, one can do it for only Tk10.
The hospital doctors are available at the outdoor department from Saturday to Thursday (8am-2pm).
Even the hospital offers a low-cost testing facility in the lab of the NINH, doctors prescribe a patient after admission and on receipt of test reports.
Nayan Ahmed who came with his mother to the outdoor department said his mother had not been able to move her left hand for the past few days. Earlier, she suddenly began to feel dizzy.
The doctor thinks his mother had had a brain stroke. He has to get some tests done. He told The Business Post that he came to the hospital for its reputation and low-cost treatment facility.
Many patients like fourth-grade student Rafayat Islam and a private company employee Azizur Rahman came to the hospital with all-time headache.
They said middle class families like them couldn’t afford the costs other hospital charge.
They had to queue up for quite a long time to consult a doctor but still they are happy with the medical treatments at the hospital. It is not right to expect anything more with only Tk10, they told The Business Post.
Low-cost lab testing
Narayanganj resident Rahima Begum got her tests done in consultation with an outdoor doctor. Her daughter Anwara said her mother had had a headache and so they came to the hospital. The doctor asked her for a CT scan.
If they got the CT scan done at another lab it would have cost them Tk4,000-5,000 but they did it here for only Tk2,000 here.
A garment worker Kuddus Bapary said there were many private hospitals for treatment and examination of neurological diseases. Poor people like them cannot get treatment there.
However, he said, he could get better treatment with up-to-date equipment and that too for a low cost at this hospital.
The doctor and lab men said the tests for neurological diseases are expensive and so people have to pay a fee for the tests here.
However, it is still half of any other private hospitals. CT scan examination costs Tk2, 000 and MRI test ranges from Tk3, 000 to Tk15, 000 depending on the modes of the tests.
Free-of-cost operation
Nuruzzaman Afser, a student, came to this hospital with a brain tumor for treatment. He has already been to different hospitals.
All of them advised him to undergo an operation to remove the tumor but it would cost him a fat amount of money that he couldn’t afford to manage. Finally he came to this hospital for the treatment, he told The Business Post.
He came to know about free-of-cost operation at this hospital. Though it is very difficult to manage to get admission and confirm a birth for operation he came here with a high expectation, Afser said.
Alauddin from Manikganj’s Singair said his granddaughter had a brain tumor. They had spent about Tk2 lakh for her treatment but it didn’t work. Later they came to this hospital and her granddaughter was fine now after the operation.
He said he didn’t have to pay for the operation. He only bought some medicines which were not in supply here.
“I am happy. Happy for the treatment, with zero operation cost,” Alauddin told The Business Post.
Additional patient are not allowed
The National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospitals began its journey in 2012. It has already reached every stratum of people irrespective of rich and poor.
However, at present, it is difficult to get a bed under the pressure of growing number of patients though this hospital is the last resort for many people in the country.
The NINH is very neat and clean. The management of this hospital is more cooperative than any other public-private hospitals.
The institute provides all kinds of neurological treatments including stroke, epilepsy, GBS (paralyzed limbs), amnesia (forgetfulness), brain vascular infections, brain tumors, brain stains (established stain to normalized blood vessels) and movement disorder.
This hospital’s operation theatre, cath lab, laboratory services, neuroradiology, neurophysiology, ICU and HDU are equipped with all modern and sophisticated technologies.
Hospital employees said admitted patients had to pay Tk150 for each bed a day. AC and non-AC cabins take Tk1000, Tk700, Tk400 and Tk300 respectively. Besides, all the patients have to pay Tk125 per day for daily essentials.
NINH Deputy Director Prof (Clinical Neurology) M.S Jahirul Haque Chowdhury told The Business Post that usually they do not admit patients beyond hospital’s seat capacity. In urgent cases they refer patients to another hospital.
Dedicated wards for stroke patients
The hospital has a 100-bed comprehensive stroke unit where brain stroke patients are treated. Every five minutes one stroke patient comes to the hospital. Doctors are struggling to handle so many patients.
This correspondent talked to some patients’ relatives about the treatment. They said their patients had had strokes in different places and they had pressure problems. However, the hospitals referred them to this hospital. They are happy with the treatment.
Soon-to-be largest neurology hospital in world
NINH Deputy Director Prof M.S Jahirul Haque Chowdhury said work was underway to upgrade this 450-bed institute to a 950-bed hospital.
Another building is being constructed next to the hospital, where work is underway to add another 500 beds. Once done, this hospital will be the largest neuroscience hospital in the world, he said boastfully.
