2,056 medical officers, special cadre doctors recommended for appointments, SHC told

As many as 2,056 medical officers and special cadre doctors have been recommended for appointments by the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC), the health secretary told Sindh High Court on Friday.

Filing comments on a petition seeking appointments of doctors to the government-run hospitals in Shikarpur and districts as well as the provision of adequate medical facilities for patients, the health secretary submitted that the health department sent two requisitions to the SPSC for the appointment of doctors – 1,783 medial officers on BS-17 and 499 special cadre doctors on BS-18.

The court had directed the health department to submit a report with regard to fresh appointments of doctors recommended by the commission. During the previous hearing, it had taken notice of the delay in the appointment of over 1,700 doctors, including specialists, on vacant posts of the government-run hospitals in the province and had directed the health department to explain why vacant posts had not been filled.

The health secretary submitted that the SPSC had forwarded recommendations for appointments of 1,729 medical officers out of 1,783 and 327 specialist cadre doctors out of 499 doctors of BS-18.

He said all the specialist cadre doctors had been posted in their domicile districts against existing vacancies after the completion of the codal formalities. He added that 302 doctors of BS-17 had been posted in their domicile districts and offer orders had been issued to 434 women medical officers and their posting orders were being issued this week after the completion of all codal formalities.

He submitted that the health department had received recommendations of 946 medical officers and offer orders had been issued to the selected doctors within a week for the completion of the codal formalities.

A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar, after taking the report on record, directed the law officer to supply copies to the petitioner’s counsel to go through the report and adjourned the hearing till December 18.

The petitioner, Shahab Usto, submitted that several victims of the Shikarpur Imambargah blast a couple of years ago had to be shifted to hospitals in Sukkur and Larkana due to a lack of proper medical facilities and specialised doctors at the Civil Hospital Shikarpur.

He added that many lives could have been saved had adequate facilities been available at the hospital. He maintained that many of the injured were shifted to the hospital in rickshaws and police mobiles as there was no ambulance available in the city.

Usto further submitted that the medical facilities available were not enough to cater to the needs of around one million population of the city, and several posts for specialised doctors and other staff were lying vacant despite an annual budget allocation of Rs22.3 million.

The court was requested to direct the government to fill the positions and order an inquiry into why the posts of senior doctors and specialised surgeons at the hospital remained vacant.