Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) administration has exposed the much touted claims of the Nawaz Sharif led federal government for providing medical facilities to the poor on a priority basis, as on Thursday, by directing a patient suffering from serious ailment to come after three years (in 2019) for the surgery, it was mentioned in the hospital prescription available with Daily Times.

A patient, Atia Begum, from the suburb of the capital was suffering from gall bladder pain came to the PIMS for treatment while she was crying with pain.

After a preliminary investigation, she was diagnosed with a stone in her gall bladder that required an earlier operation as there is no alternative to surgery.

According to a PIMS laboratory report, the ailment of Atia Begum must be treated on priority basis, otherwise the disease could turn into repulsive shape.

Doctors sitting in the hospital section of “Outdoor Patient Department (OPD)”, directing her to meet the PIMS Surgeon for getting an operation date as there is no other alternative treatment.

Atia Begum who has no political connection and has a rural background went to the surgery section of the hospital and met with the PIMS surgeon concerned for getting the date of the operation.

By observing minutely the labortary reports and her prescription, Dr Majid wrote a date in March 2019 for the operation of her disease and asked her to leave his ward as earlier as possible as some others patients were waiting for their turns.

Atia Begum could not understand the agony waiting for her as she could not read the date of operation and later on she verbally asked the surgeon whether now she had been admitted to the ward for the operation.

The surgeon got angry and ordered her to come here for the operation after three years as thousand patients were already lined up for their turns.

Hearing this, heaven fell upon the poor Atia Begum who was crying out of pain who started raising her voices against the three-year- time schedule for her operation which should be done as earlier as possible.

The agony of Atia Begum is not the story of a poor patient but it reveals the sorry state affairs of hospitals and the unethical attitude of the doctors inducted there for treating the patients. It has been revealed in a Daily Times probe that there are only eight operation theatres at the PIMS hospitals and one operation theatre has been granted to the patients for gall bladder surgery which is proving to be a rising disease in the country.

It has been revealed in a report that patients of gall bladder have to pay 60000 dirhams to private medical hospitals for the treatment and the PIMS doctor are practicing in private medical hospitals with impunity.

While talking with Daily Times the Secretary CA& DD, Nargis Ghullo, said that the incident would be investigated properly and the responsible doctors would have to pay the price of this maltreatment meted out to the poor patient who needed an earlier treatment.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has promised to the people of the country to provide medical facilities to them by improving the conditions of the country’s hospital which have been marred by corruption and incompetence. The federal government has also launched the health insurance policy to meeting the pressing demands of the people but this move also has miserable failed to alleviate the health agony of the people.