Closing the door: YDA to shut down OPDs at govt hospitals

Doctors claim central induction policy will ruin medical profession


Our Correspondent December 09, 2016

LAHORE: It seems the people of Lahore may have to reschedule any plans for a checkup at a government hospital as all outpatient departments have closed their doors.

The Young Doctors Association is yet again protesting against the government’s central induction policy.

“Today, we will close all OPDs to protest against the CIP,” said YDA Punjab President Dr Maroof Venice.

While talking to The Express Tribune, he said government teaching hospitals were producing 4,000 doctors a year, but only 500 will be able to gain admission in any specialisation due to the CIP.

Venice claimed these circumstances would ruin the medical profession in Pakistan.

“The CIP policy of the government is not a rational decision and they must reconsider it,” he requested.

The doctor added that YDA’s Mayo chapter had been suspended by the association’s Punjab leadership and those doctors will not take part in the protest. Therefore, patients can still visit Mayo Hospital.

Duties will be boycotted at the Services Hospital, Jinnah Hospital, Children’s Hospital and Ganga Raam Hospital among others.

The doctors will decide to go on strike for an indefinite period after discussions among all YDA chapters.

What is the CIP?

The health department spokesman said three major criteria of need-based induction, transparency and merit will be imposed in the CIP.

“There is a shortage of doctors for anaesthesia, neurology and heart surgery, while gynaecological wards are overwhelmed” he added.

He said that through the central induction policy, there can be equal numbers of doctors in all disciplines.

Defining the second point, he said postgraduate residences are appointed at hospitals through an institutional basis.

When they get appointed through CIP, it will help to break the monopoly of influential people at hospitals.

He out that central induction policy was being implanted through refined professors of different medical universities and there is no chance of political influence over them.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 10th, 2016.

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