Due to the absence of an obstetrician–gynecologist at Beni Provincial Hospital, maternity services have come to a halt. After the only government hospital in the district headquarters lost its specialist doctor last month, maternity services have remained completely stopped, forcing patients to travel outside the district for childbirth.
“We were told that treatment wasn’t possible without a specialist doctor, so we were referred to Pokhara. We couldn’t receive services at our own district hospital,” said the husband of a pregnant woman who was on her way to Pokhara for maternity care from Beni Hospital. Patients complain that they are being referred for delivery even in cases where normal delivery would have been possible, citing potential complications in the absence of a specialist.
Pregnant women coming from Jaljala Rural Municipality of Parbat and from Myagdi are facing difficulties, yet the provincial government has not been able to send a doctor. A few years ago, Beni had gained widespread recognition for successfully performing surgery on a pregnant women who had been referred from Baglung and Dhaulagiri Hospital and even Parbart District Hospital. But now, due to the shortage of personnel, maternity services are almost entirely shut down.
According to Dr. Ramu Sapkota, Acting Medical Superintendent of Beni Hospital, services have been severely affected due to the lack of an obstetrician–gynecologist. “We issued a vacancy announcement, but no one applied. We have also informed the provincial government about the issue, but no doctor has been sent yet,” he said.
Currently, except for orthopedics and neurology, other surgical services are also halted. Although the general public has a positive perception of the government hospital, the absence of maternity specialists has compelled even low-income women to travel outside the district for treatment. Despite repeated requests to the Ministry of Health of Gandaki Province, the issue has not been addressed, said Dilkumari Khatri, Acting Chief of the Myagdi District Coordination Committee. The number of patients has been increasing daily since services started from the new hospital building.
Even though the outpatient department has sufficient doctors, the lack of maternity services has not received the attention of local representatives and concerned authorities. The hospital continues to operate inpatient and outpatient services in orthopedics, dental, eye, pediatrics, a short-term service center for survivors of violence, and dialysis. Dr. Sapkota said that more than 60,000 patients receive services annually at Beni Hospital.