HYDERABAD: The government hospitals in the city seem to be sitting ducks in case a major fire incident occurs. Hospitals such as Gandhi Hospital and Osmania General Hospital neither have functional-fire fighting equipment nor are the staff given any training in an emergency fire evacuation. Osmania Hospital faces an even bigger risk, as the electrical wiring of the century-old building has accumulated cobwebs and hang from the ceilings around open water sources of air conditioners and bathrooms.
On Thursday afternoon, a minor fire broke out at Gandhi Hospital in the paediatric surgery department due to a short circuit of air conditioners. At least 15 patients along with doctors were evacuated as soon as smoke was noticed. However, the majority of the fire extinguishers in the hospital are defunct, and are currently either being used as makeshift trash cans, tobacco spitting corners or as storage units. When Express interviewed the staff, including doctors, nurses, ward attendants and security personnel, no one had any professional knowledge of how to use a fire extinguisher, or what to do in case of an emergency. Not a single ward is equipped with fire extinguishers. A senior medical officer, choosing to stay anonymous, said, “I don’t remember the last time there was a mock drill. We haven’t been given any training regarding fire hazards. If we see any smoke or hear of a fire, we just inform the senior medical officers or the superintendent.”
Senior nurses at the nursing station did not know if fire hazard mechanisms were even available at the hospital, let alone know how to use them. A senior nurse said, “We are only allowed to tinker with the basic electrical switches for fans and lights, like we do at home.”
In Osmania General Hospital, the old building does not have a single fire extinguisher or fire fighting equipment. However, Dr Kavitha, the Resident Medical Officer, said that “the contract-based security staff was provided a thorough fire drill training by the Afzal Gunj fire station officials. Though the security officials have been trained, the staff has not received any formal training.”According to security guards, only about 20-25 guards were a part of this training programme. Nurses and ward attendants have been trained to handle only hazardous bio-waste and it’s disposal. However, Osmania General Hospital faces another challenge, in terms of electrical fire hazards. The building has open electrical wires hanging from the ceiling, walls and out-dated electric sockets where patients use their own electronic devices, such as table fans and multiple phone chargers.
Each of these hospitals cater to more than 1500-2500 patients at any given point of the day. While newer buildings of hospitals such as Niloufer and Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences are equipped with fire extinguishers, the staff in these hospitals are not confide on how to use them.