Medical staff to protest against hospital privatisation

Over 8,000 workers from Punjab are likely to take part in demonstration on Oct 30

LAHORE: The health department’s employees, from Grade-1 to Grade-16, will protest and hold a sit-in on October 30 against the privatisation of hospitals.

United Health Federation General Secretary Muhammad Salman, talking to The Express tribune, said they would gather more than 8,000 workers from across the province for the demonstration.

“We will gather in front of the health director general’s office and then march towards Mall Road,” he said. “We will choose either the Punjab Assembly or the Chief Minister House for the sit-in.”



Salman said the government, in the name of public-private partnership, has begun the privatisation of hospitals and started lay-offs. “We will not accept the government policies and will continue our struggle until we succeed.”

Health professionals and paramedical staff from across Punjab will participate in the protest and sit-in, he said.

Allied Health Professionals President Shoaib Anwar Chudhray pointed out that the government has announced the regularisation of 4,000 dengue workers with immediate effect, but unfortunately they haven’t been made permanent as yet. “All health professionals are worried about their jobs and it is the responsibility of the government to take clear stance on privatisation policies.”

The health department spokesman said that neither any hospital is being privatised nor is any such policy under consideration in the department.

He added that in public sector hospitals, some services like parking, security and canteen etc have already been outsourced for the last many years. “In addition, non-clinical services, such as laundry, janitorial services, electrical, plumbing and lifts were being outsourced.”



The spokesman categorically said that hospitals were not being privatised. “The outsourcing of these services will be done after a proper bidding process.”

The main objective to outsource these services is to ensure proper maintenance of the installations/machinery and availability of better facilities to the patients.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 26^th, 2017.