Against ethics: Nurses refuse to attend patients at LRH

Hospital spokesperson said they would not carry out enquiries on verbal complaints

PESHAWAR: Although the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has accepted most of their demands, nurses in different wards of Lady Reading Hospital have refused to do their duties as required.

While speaking to The Express Tribune on Saturday, officials said they received several complaints against the nursing staff and have forwarded them to the department concerned but action had yet to be taken.

“You cannot even ask them to do their job as they always respond in a rude manner,” a senior administrative official said. “In return, the nurses will ask you to do your job and stop interfering in others’ duties.”

He said if someone argues with the nurses, they will call their community members and start agitation against them.

The official maintained several complaints were filed against the nurses for refusing to attend patients, especially during Ramazan. He said recently a few pregnant women were compelled to shift to other facilities after the nursing staff was reluctant to attend cases before Iftar.

“I brought my daughter-in-law here on June 7 and she was about to deliver a baby but when we reached the Gynae ‘C’ Ward, we were told to wait until Iftar,” Nasir Khan said.

“We heard of reforms in the health sector but what I saw was evident of the fact that changes needed to be brought in behaviour of the health staff.”

He added, “My wife told me our daughter-in-law would die if we did not shift her to any other health facility.” He said they were  compelled to shift her from LRH to a small cantonment board hospital.

Nasir Khan said they rushed to the cantonment hospital but they were refused since his daughter-in-law had not been registered with the female doctors and it could lead to complications. He said they a lacked visiting card, because of which they returned to LRH.

“We returned to LRH after Iftar and then the nurses accommodated us,” Nasir Khan said.

He demanded authorities take notice of the incident as several patients visit LRH from far-flung areas.

However, nurses at the Gynae ‘C’ Ward refused to comment on the matter and called Nasir Khan’s allegations baseless.

When approached for comment, LRH Spokesperson Zulfiqar Babakhel said it was not appropriate to carry out enquiries on verbal complaints.

He said those having complaints against staffers should write an application to the hospital director so that action can be taken against those responsible.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 12^th, 2016.