Job hazard: Hospital staff demand security cover

LAHORE: Scores of doctors, nurses and paramedical staff on Thursday staged a protest demonstration to protest Wednesday’s shooting at Jinnah Hospital. An armed man had shot and injured a patient at the emergency ward of the hospital.

Chanting slogans, the protesters demanded that security for health workers be tightened. They said the government should provide a better security cover to public hospital workers in the city.

“This is not the first time paramedics have been in the line of fire at a hospital,” said Aftab Ashraf, a member of the Young Doctors Association (YDA).

He said in 2013, a similar incident had taken place at Mayo Hospital. “Several paramedics were injured,” he said. “How many more incidents of the kind have to happen before the government decides to secure the hospitals?”

Waleed, another YDA activist, said the government had installed security cameras and set up pickets near hospitals, but those were not functional.

“There are no policemen at several check posts and most security cameras broke down a long time ago,” he said.

“Jinnah Hospital is one of the biggest public health facility in Lahore. Thousands of people visit the hospital everyday and hundreds of paramedical staffs, doctors and nurses are employed here,” he said. “The security situation is the same at all hospitals,” he added.

Waleed said the government must take steps to strengthen security. “We will continue to protest until the government takes tangible steps to stop such incidents.”

Talking to The Express Tribune, Health Department spokesman Ikhlaq Ali Khan said a meeting had been scheduled between government officials and representatives of the YDA and other paramedical staff associations on Friday (today).“Hopefully we will resolve all issues,” he said.

On Wednesday, a murder suspect admitted to Jinnah Hospital’s emergency was shot at and injured by his rival.

He suffered multiple bullets wounds and his condition was stated to be serious.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2016.