Doctors demand security in hospitals

Rawalpindi
The young doctors went on strike at outpatients department of Benazir Bhutto Hospital after 11 O’clock in the morning on Tuesday on the call of Young Doctors Association Punjab that has demanded foolproof security for staff in all hospitals serving under the Punjab government.
The YDA Rawalpindi chapter on the auspices of YDA Punjab has also announced daily strike from 11:00a.m. onwards in OPDs of the three teaching hospitals in town from Wednesday as a protest to the brutal killing of an executive member of YDA and a neurosurgeon at Nishtar Hospital in Multan Dr. Samiullah and attack on Cardiologist at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences Dr. Shahid Nawaz Malik.
The decision of daily strike in OPDs in hospitals all across Punjab has been taken by YDA Punjab in response to the rage and anger in the doctors’ community because of brutal killing of a doctor in Multan and attack on a doctor in the federal capital, says a statement issued by the YDA Punjab.
The YDA alleged that no culprits in both the cases have yet been arrested and announced that the daily strike would continue until the culprits are arrested and the hospitals are provided foolproof security system.
The young doctors in all departments except gynaecology department were on strike at the OPD of BBH after 11:00a.m. in the morning and the strike would be observed daily on the same pattern, said Information Secretary of YDA BBH Dr Muhammad Waqas Ilyas while talking to ‘The News’ on Tuesday.
He added that the young doctors at Holy Family Hospital and District Headquarters Hospital would also be on strike from Wednesday (today) after 11:00 am in the morning. He said the YDA is demanding improvement of security in all hospitals of the province. We are demanding induction of a chief security officer in every hospital who should be at least a retired colonel or retired major so that he can head the security teams at the healthcare facilities in a professional manner, said Dr. Waqas.
He added the YDA is demanding the government to appoint trained security personnel instead of untrained ‘chowkidars’ in each hospital of the province and separate allocation of finances should be done for the purpose.
Medical Superintendent at BBH Dr. Asif Qadir Mir, when contacted by ‘The News’ on Tuesday said the strike by young doctors including house officers and post-graduate trainees did not affect working of the hospital much as the senior doctors and consultants examined the patients as per routine.
The faculty members of Rawalpindi Medical College and doctors employed at the BBH worked as per routine on Tuesday and the strike by the YDA can be termed as symbolic as it did not cause suffering for the patients at OPD, he said.