DHAKA: Patient care and emergency transfers at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) remained severely disrupted for the second consecutive day on Wednesday as private ambulance owners continued their ongoing strike, leaving critical patients and their families in immense distress.
 
Striking operators halted services from Wednesday morning (October 28) across key areas of the premises, including the emergency unit, outpatient department, and the front of Building No. 2.
 
At the hospital grounds, desperate relatives were seen scrambling for alternative transport to transfer critically ill family members for diagnostics or discharge.
 
Shamim Gazi, whose brother Shahin Gazi is undergoing treatment at the hospital's new building following a brain stroke, recounted their ordeal: "The doctor recommended an MRI scan at Ibn Sina Hospital in Lalbagh, and our home is in Savar. But we have been stranded waiting for an ambulance for over half an hour with no success."
 
Similarly, Shahina Akhtar, daughter of 80-year-old patient Shahjahan Mia from Matlab, Chandpur, shared that her father was discharged on Tuesday after being admitted on October 17. Unable to secure an ambulance yesterday, they spent the night at the hospital and were ultimately forced to take him home in a CNG-run auto-rickshaw on Wednesday morning.
 
In another instance, Rezaul Karim struggled for hours to transfer his sister, Seema Akhtar, who sustained severe injuries in a road accident on Mawa Road on Tuesday. Doctors at DMCH recommended moving her to the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Panggu Hospital).
 
"I tried for two to three hours but couldn't arrange an ambulance, and calling the emergency hotline 999 yielded no immediate help," Karim said. "Eventually, an official government ambulance driver stationed at DMCH agreed to transport her."
 
Allegations of Monopoly and Hostage Tactics
Frustrated families expressed anger over the situation, accusing private operators of holding vulnerable patients hostage.
 
"The entire hospital ecosystem is plagued by syndicates, and ambulance services are no exception," alleged Shafiq Ahmed, a visitor at the hospital. "When we try to bring in an outside ambulance to take a patient, local drivers block them. The government must crack down and dismantle this syndicate immediately."
 
Escalation Warning
The strike was called on Tuesday by the DMCH Private Ambulance Owners' Association to demand dedicated parking facilities for their vehicles within the hospital campus.
 
Md. Imon Ali, General Secretary of the DMCH Private Ambulance Owners' Association, confirmed that the strike remains active and warned of further escalation.
 
"Our strike is ongoing. If our demands are not met by Wednesday, the Dhaka Metropolitan Ambulance Owners' Association will join and call a broader strike across the entire capital starting Thursday," he cautioned.