Amid the heightened need of doctors at Liaquat University Hospital (LUH) during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Sindh government has slashed the budget for postgraduate (PG) doctors at Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMHS) by 40 per cent.
According to the Young Doctors Association (YDA), the disclosure was made at a meeting with the LUMHS vice chancellor (VC) and other officials on Tuesday.
"We went for the meeting to ask the VC to pay us the enhanced stipend, which was approved 18 months ago. But to our surprise, we were told that the budget released for the 2020-21 fiscal year is barely sufficient for around 300 PGs," Dr Faizan Hussain of YDA, who attended the meeting, told The Express Tribune.
The PGs at LUMHS are currently being paid stipends of Rs65,000 per month, even though the provincial government announced an increment of Rs10,000 around a year and a half ago. The YDA has been demanding payment of Rs75,000 as well as arrears for 18 months.
The government has reportedly released Rs246 million for the PGs to the varsity. According to Dr Hussain, 346 PGs from LUMHS were working at LUH - the university's tertiary care teaching hospital -before the new batch raised the number to 450. The total number of slots allotted to the PGs is 500.
"The provincial government has not notified that the number of approved slots is being curtailed from 500 to 300. Only the budget has been decreased," the LUMHS finance director told the YDA at the meeting.
Meanwhile, the VC, Prof Dr Bikharam Devrajani, assured the doctors that he would write to the Sindh health secretary, Dr Kazim Jatoi, to brief him about the issue and demand further funds. But this has hardly instilled any confidence in the doctors.
"Seven months ago, the VC gave us similar assurances, even telling us he would join us in our protest against the provincial government if our stipend wasn't increased," said Dr Hussain, referring to the YDA's meeting with Prof Devrajani on January 2.
He added that the VC's promises of a separate hostel and library for PGs as well as the issuance of discount cards for the LUMHS laboratory and canteen were yet to materialise.
The YDA has also demanded the installation of a biometric attendance system for PG doctors at LUH, claiming that issues in manual attendance often delay the payment of stipends for months.
The LUMHS spokesman could not be contacted for comment on the matter.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 30th, 2020.
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