Shooting at hospital

The shooting incident at the hospital raises questions about security of physicians, patients and those working there

A man shot and wounded a doctor at the National Institute of Cardio-Vascular Diseases (NICVD) in Karachi late on Thursday night. A day earlier, the alleged assailant was reportedly refused treatment by another doctor at the hospital. The attacker worked for Counter-Terrorism Department, and had been suffering from a chest problem and fever for the past several days, according to a senior CTD official. He visited the NICVD on Wednesday to get sleeping pills prescribed as he complained that he had been unable to sleep for the past three days. The doctor advised him to avoid sleeping pills, saying consumption of sleep-inducing medicines was harmful to health. Upon this the attacker, named Kamran, left the place disappointed. He returned to the hospital the following night and asked for the doctor who had refused to prescribe him sleeping pills. Upon not finding that doctor, he entered the emergency room of the hospital and fired at another doctor with a pistol injuring him in both legs. The police have registered a case.

The senior CTD official says the detained cop had been unwell for the past several days and had been coping with mental health issues. In his statement to the police, the attacker said on Wednesday he visited the hospital upon feeling uneasy. He claimed that at the hospital the doctor ignored him and asked the patient standing behind him to move ahead of him, saying he felt let down by the doctor’s attitude. The shooting incident at the hospital exclusively meant for the treatment of heart patients raises important questions about security of physicians, patients, their attendants and all those working there. How a man carrying a firearm managed to enter the hospital where patients need an atmosphere of utmost calm. A man entering the hospital premises with a pistol exposes a serious lapse of security. Before this shooting incident, several cases of violence and rowdyism have occurred at government hospitals. The situation calls for immediate remedial measures. 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 20^th, 2020.

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