All professors of the Allied Hospitals and Rawalpindi Medical College (RMC) have announced their full support for the Young Doctors Association (YDA). The announcement was made at a press conference held at the Holy Family Hospital (HFH) Medical Unit, Conference Hall, on Saturday.
The professors urged the government to announce a comprehensive package for the young doctors and warned to withdraw their services from the Allied Hospitals if the Punjab government refuses to accept YDA’s demands.
YDA spokesperson Dr Waleed Abbasi said that over 900 doctors have resigned from their posts in protest. The government, in response, has started hiring new doctors to take their place, without even considering their qualifications, he said. “However, their efforts have failed,” said Abbasi, as the substitute doctors, called from Murree and Kahuta, have refused to take the jobs. “This has strengthened our unity and reflects the poor standing of the government,” he added.
The doctors of Allied Hospitals said the government is using negative tactics by threatening YDA that would make fresh appointments. “If government can bear the expenses of hiring new doctors then why is it not increasing salaries of young doctors,” said a senior doctor.
He said that the government needs to formulate a law that bars any member or employee of the Punjab Assembly from going abroad to get medical treatment. “When they are forced to come here for treatment, the condition of these hospitals will automatically improve,” he added.
Punjab government has deployed a heavy contingent of police in the Allied Hospitals to stop doctors from protesting. SSP Operations Yasin Farooq has ordered police to lend an iron hand to the “trouble-making doctors”. The professors and YDA members strongly condemned the deployment of police inside hospital premises and demanded their immediate removal.
Responding to a question, they said that recent deaths of a few patients in the hospitals could not be attributed to the unavailability of doctors as these were “routine deaths”. These patients were in critical condition and they could not be saved despite all out efforts by the hospital staff.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 03rd, 2011
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