• Hospital short of specialists in anaesthesia, surgery, paediatrics, haematology, microbiology, endocrinology, ENT, neurology  

Despite the lack of medical specialists in several categories including anaesthetist, the Hambantota District General Hospital stated that it is currently performing about 75% of the scheduled surgeries.

The only anaesthetist who was serving at the Hospital, Dr. Chamil Uduwela, had left for the United Kingdom without any notice, recently. Subsequently, the other specialists at the Hospital have had to postpone all scheduled surgeries, and the situation has sparked controversy. According to the sources, there should be two anesthesiologists at the Hospital. In the recent past, one anaesthetist who worked there had been transferred to the Dental Institute of Colombo, while the other had joined a university. Dr. Uduwela, who migrated last week, had been assigned to the Hospital immediately after being registered as a specialist.

Against this backdrop, The Daily Morning learns that the Hospital is lacking several other categories of medical specialists. Sources within the Hospital stated that both general surgeons who were serving at the Hospital had resigned by giving due notices, while one out of the two general physicians and one out of the two paediatricians had migrated. In addition, the Hospital has had one haematologist, one microbiologist, one endocrinologist, and one otorhinolaryngologist (ear, nose, throat {ENT} surgeons), all of whom had migrated in the recent past. With the said number of specialists migrating and leaving the service at the Hospital, sources stated that there is only one general physician, one paediatrician and one general surgeon at the Hospital at present, despite the requirement of two for each category. In addition, the haematologist, the microbiologist, and the endocrinologist have been replaced by acting professionals including a senior registrar who is yet to be registered as a specialist. The vacancies for an ENT surgeon, and a neurologist have not yet been filled, even with an acting appointment.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, an official of the Hospital said that an anaesthetist has been appointed for the Hospital with effect from today (17). However, he said that one anaesthetist is not sufficient to carry out the duties day and night, and that the same may disrupt the performance of surgeries. Despite the shortage of a significant number of specialists, he said that the Hospital is currently performing about 75% of the scheduled surgeries.