PIMS doctors expected to resume duties today

Hospital admin given 72 hours to comply with demand of enhanced security

ISLAMABAD: Patients visiting the outpatient department at the largest tertiary care hospital in the capital were left running from pillar to post for services after young doctors continued their strike for a second successive day.

Doctors at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) have been on a partial boycott of their duties since Tuesday after they claimed that early on Tuesday morning, an unidentified armed man had barged into one of the wards of the hospital and had robbed two doctors before fleeing.



Terming the incident a massive security breach which put the lives of health practitioners working there in danger, the young doctors have given the hospital administration 72 hours to provide them with security and to arrest the man involved in the incident.

In a meeting on Wednesday, the young doctors said they were cognizant of the problems faced by patients. Hence, they decided that while they will stage a protest and observe three ‘black’ days over the incident, they will not disrupt activities or services in the outpatient department.

However, after the expiration of their deadline, if their demands for security were not met, they would completely boycott healthcare services.

They urged Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, who had recently visited the hospital, to take notice of the issue.

“It has become impossible for female doctors to perform duties in such a threatening and unsafe environment,” they said in a statement.



While the FIR registered by the hospital administration only talks about snatching of wallets, mobile phones and wristwatches from a male and female doctor in the hospital ward, young doctors on social media and in private conversations have alleged that the unidentified man had also allegedly attempted to sexually assault a doctor.

The Pims administration, however, has denied this. Doctors, though, have demanded an impartial inquiry to unearth the truth.

Meanwhile, SSP Najeeb Bugvi said that they had identified the armed robber as a drug addict and that they are raiding his known hideouts to arrest him.

He added that man’s family had disowned him since he was involved in theft and other crimes.

He said they also have been auditing the Pims security as they have outsourced its security to a private firm and armed forces also giving them a cover so it’s a massive security lapse in presence of so many forces.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2018.