Daily Times

ISLMABAD: Doctors and technical staffs appointed in Mother and Child Healthcare (MCH) Centre used to abstain from their duties that has irked the patients who demanded of the senior administration to take punitive action against them, a senior officer told Daily Times on Friday.

According to complains they submitted to administration, patients stated that they had to wait many hours for the concerned doctors because the medical staff seems to pass their duty hours in other pursuits.

MCH was set up within the premises of PIMS with the financial support of Japan to provide better health facilities to the patients coming from the capital and its suburban areas.

The government has appointed dozens of doctors and other medical staff to serve the patients and has earmarked huge fund for their salaries and other perks but irony of fate is that these doctor often found at their seats or wards.

The doctors who were supposed to serve the patients are found in Cafeteria set up besides the outdoor ward at MCH with the approval of the competent authorities.

In the morning when patients come in huge numbers confounded to see the empty chairs of the doctors and the patients are directed to wait at the outside of the room which is also mind boggling exercise.

Doctors who supposed to sit in their rooms are flown in group and often found at the Cafeteria near the outdoor patients ward on the pretext that it is now tea time. A patient who was reluctant to give his identity told this scribe said that the doctor remained only one hour at their room and the remain time they spent at Cafeteria or in other leisure activities.

A senior office of PIMS told this scribe that there is no mechanism to check the presence of doctors at their duty resultant no action can be taken against any doctor who found guilty of such crime.

He said that the Cafeteria is being given to a special party for the last many years at the behest of the doctors and senior professor appointed there.

Another patient Miss Anisa said that senior professors rarely sit on their seat and some of their subordinates are doing the duty on their behalf.

She also called upon the senior administration to take action against those doctor to shying from doing their jobs and spending their most duty time at Cafeteria.

Another patient who came from KP said that Cafeteria that was set up at the premises of outdoor ward should be closed immediately in order to tame the doctor and to compel them to be more attentive to the sick people.

While talking to Daily Times Executive Officer PIMS and Vice Chancellor SZABU Dr Akram said that the criminal proceeding could be started against all doctors who will be found guilty of not attending the patients and allegedly passing their duty time at the Cafeteria.

He said the doctor would be compelled ,by taking the legal course, to performed their duty sincerely and would also be ensure that they should be available at their duty rooms.

He also hinted to shift the cafeteria to other appropriate place calling its existing besides the outdoor ward is unethical and against all norm of medical practice.

He said the patients grievance against the doctors would be addressed on priority basis and medical facilities to the sick people would be provided them.