At least 2.8 million residents of Cox's Bazar currently rely on a 250-bed general hospital, which serves 5,000 to 6,000 patients daily.

Additionally, the influx of Rohingya refugees has further strained the healthcare system.

Due to the absence of key departments such as neurosurgery, hematology, hepatology, psychiatry, NICU, and burn units, patients are frequently referred to Chittagong Medical College Hospital, which is 150km away and costly.

Cox's Bazar Medical College students showed the grim picture of the medical system of the tourist town today emphasising the importance of a full fledged medical college hospital in the district.

They staged a human chain and held a press conference this afternoon demanding the swift construction of a 500-bed modern hospital.

The medical students and intern doctors of the college said although Cox's Bazar Medical College was established in 2008, no permanent 500-bed hospital has been built in the past 17 years. As a result, students must travel nearly 8km daily for clinical classes, which is time-consuming and difficult.

According to the speakers, inadequate facilities at Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital hinder higher medical education, research, and specialised treatment.

The students strongly demanded that constructing a 500-bed modern hospital would ensure better treatment for locals and tourists while enhancing training and research opportunities for doctors.

Among those who addressed the protest were Dr Hisam, president of Cox's Bazar Intern Doctors Medical Association, along with fifth-year students Asibul Haque, Mizanur Rahman, Ahsan Sakib, Fahim Hasan, Rahat Hossain, and Shahadat Hossain.