It was inaugurated with much fanfare with a promise to provide the required services under one roof, but the Rs900 million corona field hospital at Expo Centre, Lahore, has proven to be a complete failure.

According to 24NewsHD TV channel, only eight patients are currently admitted in the temporary health facility and the daily rent of a bed is now around Rs0.5 million.

But what’s is the reason? It is simple. Most of the patients left the field hospital as the services and facilities provided there have been pathetic to say the least.

Although dozens of doctors, nurses and other staff are deputed at this facility, they have very little to do.

Sources say the coronavirus patients are not ready to get admitted there as there is no service or facility. The situation can be gauged from the fact that there have been less than 100 patients at this field hospital during the last one-and-a-half month.

On the other hand, 412 coronavirus patients are currently being treated at the different private and state-run hospital in Lahore. Of these, 177 are in the intensive care units with 92 of them placed on ventilators.

In an earlier report aired on May 7, 24NewsHD TV channel had raised the issue, saying that the Rs900 million facility with 1,000 beds was supposed to treat the coronavirus patients lacked even basic amenities and services.

There are no proper washrooms or meals for the people admitted in the temporary health facility for the coronavirus patients.

Meanwhile, doctors and consultants are not ready to even check the patients who have to walk one kilometre to reach the washrooms.

At that time, 427 coronavirus patients were admitted in this field hospital which was also visited by Prime Minister Imran Khan in early April.

If we look at the expenditure, an amount of Rs45 million was spent on erecting partition at the 1,000-bed facility with another Rs25 million on purchasing beds and Rs190 million on medical equipment. 

Meanwhile, Rs900 million isn’t a one-time expenditure, as the monthly expenses allocated under different heads include Rs330 million on medicines, Rs130 million salaries and Rs180 million on operational cost.

The details of the staff deputed at the field hospital is: medical officers 413, consultants 208, physiotherapists four, nurse 882, ward attendants 190 and sweepers 190.

It is natural that the patients were desperate and feeling helpless in this situation. Hence, they were forced to stage protest on regular basis.