Almost 2,000 patients from across the country walk through the national referral hospital every day. However, the hospital’s main building, which is about two decades old, is showing its age. It is now being upgraded. Toilets, doors and other facilities are being renovated, while major changes are planned for the overcrowded emergency department. The aim is to make the hospital more comfortable for patients and ease pressure on its busiest services.
For many people, a hospital visit can already be stressful. Poor facilities can make the experience even harder.
At the national referral hospital, some of these problems are now being addressed. More than Nu 300 M has been allocated for the hospital’s infrastructure improvement in this financial year.
Renovation work began in February, including improvements to toilets, doors and other parts of the building.
For regular visitors, the changes are already visible, making their time at the hospital a little easier.
“Before, when we used to take people to the hospital and use the bathroom, there was often no water and the lights did not work properly. Now, even the patients we pick up say everything is much better,” said Sangay Phuentsho, a taxi driver.
“When I come to the hospital for a check-up and use the toilet, it is cleaner and better now. It is much better,” said Wangchuk, a patient.
One of the biggest changes will be in the emergency department, where space is being redesigned to better manage patients. The hospital has allocated around 21 million ngultrum for the department.
JDWNRH’s President Dr Pem Namgyal said, “The renovation, including replacing the doors, is almost halfway complete. The major work is the improvement of the emergency department. Inside, we had multiple small rooms separated by corridors, so we have knocked down all the walls and converted the space into one large room. There will be a desk for the doctors and nurses in the centre, with patients around them. The first part of the renovation also includes repairing the toilets and the patient beds.”
The hospital is also planning to move the outpatient department from the administrative block to the old psychiatric ward, right next to the main gate.
The existing OPD will serve the dental department. The hospital says reducing overcrowding will require more than expanding its own facilities. The plan is to direct more general OPD patients to Thromde Health Centres, bringing basic services closer to where people live.
Another Thromde Health Centre is also planned in Changjiji.
Moreover, for its more than 2,000 staff, the hospital is also making better use of its existing space, with a new gym and community room to support staff wellbeing.
With more work planned in the coming months, the hospital hopes these changes will not only improve its ageing infrastructure but also make it more efficient and comfortable for the thousands of patients from across the country and the staff who rely on it every day.
Singye Dema
Edited by Sangay Chezom
