Following a major fire on April 14 that severely damaged the second floor of Lok Bandhu Hospital including the operation theatre (OT), intensive care unit (ICU), and female medicine wards the hospital is set to resume major surgical procedures in a temporary facility starting Monday, officials confirmed.
A provisional operation theatre has been established on the first floor, which previously housed the OT before it was moved to the second floor due to infrastructure upgrades. Dr. Rajeev Dixit, Chief Medical Superintendent, stated, “The original OT didn’t meet all standards, which led to its relocation. However, with the second floor damaged, we’re returning to the initial space temporarily until repairs are complete.”
The temporary OT will feature two surgical tables, enabling 10–15 surgeries per day. Priority will be given to pending cases, while new cases will be referred to other government hospitals until full services are restored.
Plans are also underway to set up a makeshift ICU on the same floor, though additional equipment such as oxygen ports and ventilators are still needed before it can accommodate critical care patients. The original ICU had a capacity of 10–15 beds.
Renovation efforts remain in the planning and approval stages. Meanwhile, the final reports from two investigation teams both of which initially attributed the fire to human error are still pending submission as other findings are being finalized.
