The only consultant anesthesiologist at the Embilipitiya District General Hospital had left the hospital without prior notice, it was reported.
Life-saving surgeries including caesarean operations at the hospital have been halted as a result.
Sources said that Dr Udayanthi Nanayakkara, the consultant anesthesiologist had not reported to duty since last Friday (01), and the hospital management had tried to contact her, but she was not contactable.
However, sources said the higher-ups of the hospital had received a WhatsApp message from the parents of the doctor on Monday (04) stating that the consultant would not be reporting to duty.
Though the higher-ups of the hospital reached the parents to ask for the whereabouts of the daughter, the parents had not provided any specific information.
Furthermore, the patients who are to undergo surgeries like Caesarean sections and complicated surgeries are sent to the Teaching Hospitals in Ratnapura and Karapitiya due to the unavailability of the consultant anesthesiologist.
A top health official also said despite the need for two consultant anesthesiologists at the Embilipitiya Hospital since it is a District General Hospital, the post of consultant anesthesiologist had been vacant for about three months.
An anesthesiologist who was previously in this hospital had gone abroad in October last year and then another anesthesiologist had gone abroad in April, 2023.
They have not returned to Sri Lanka so far.
Almost 200 in-house patients are admitted to Embilipitiya District General Hospital for treatment on a daily basis and 9,144 surgeries have been performed in 2022 alone.
