PIC dysfunctional on 6th day

LAHORE:Contrary to Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar’s claim of making Punjab Institute of Cardiology functional again, the Out-Patients Department (OPD) and indoor wards remained dysfunctional on Monday – six days after the lawyers’ attack on country’s largest cardiac facility in the city.

The Grand Health Alliance has, however, announced resuming functioning of all departments of PIC with effect from Tuesday (today), with an ultimatum of three days for resignation of Punjab health minister and provision of security to the hospitals across the province.

The cardiac patients, including those coming to the hospital from all over Punjab, remained deprived of angiography, angioplasty, echocardiography, various diagnostic tests and all kinds of surgeries in the last six days, while the Punjab government was conspicuous by its absence in the whole episode even six days after the incident. The laboratory and Operation Theatres (OTs) remained closed during this period as well.

The doctors, nurses and paramedical staff provided treatment services to the cardiac patients in emergency ward since resuming functioning, two days after the incident, on December 13. Speaking at a press conference here in PIC on Monday, GHA Chairman Dr Salman Haseeb Chaudhry said the Punjab government had miserably failed to provide security in the hospitals, which compelled doctors, nurses and paramedical staff to work under constant fear manifested during lawyers’ attack on the hospital on December 11. Announcing to make hospital fully functional from Tuesday (today), he informed to hold a token protest in PIC’s OPD for one hour daily, with an ultimatum to expand the protest in hospitals all over Punjab if demands were not met within three days.

“The medical community demands Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid to tender her resignation within three days for further sinking health sector besides failing to represent medical community to let it down collectively in its tussle with the lawyers’ community,” Dr Salman minced no words.

He said that, ever since Dr Yasmin Rashid became Health Minister, the diagnostic tests had become dearer and medicines unavailable in hospitals. On top of it, he said, the medical community is suffering violence in hospitals.

He regretted that the Punjab government failed to convert its words into reality as security bill was not approved despite one and half year in the saddle. As PTI government was running country’s affairs through ordinances, he demanded the Punjab government immediately pass the security bill through an ordinance and implement it in letter and spirit to provide complete security cover to the doctors, nurses, paramedical staff, administrative staff and the patients in hospitals across the province. “We will not accept any unilateral security bill, if all stakeholders are not taken on board,” he warned.

He demanded to implement the policy of one patient one attendant, besides increasing the number of security guards in hospitals. He said the Punjab government had not taken any action against the lawyers’ terrorism in PIC, giving an impression of completely losing its writ before the lawyer community.

“The Punjab government has come down on its knees as lawyers were dictating the government through strikes,” he said, adding that the government was intimidating the peaceful medical community with threats of suspensions, transfers and terminations for showing restraint despite braving lawyers’ violence in the hospital.