Govt to improve tehsil hospitals
Newly-elected Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz. PHOTO: FILE
Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz has approved a plan to improve 85 tehsil headquarters (THQ) hospitals and outpatient departments (OPDs) of all government heath facilities in the province.
Chairing a meeting to provide quality healthcare facilities to the people, the CM issued directives to complete ongoing healthcare schemes without delay. He said the best health facilities are a right of the common people, which must be provided to them.
The standard of healthcare facilities in OPDs of all the hospitals would be improved in six to eight months; he said and announced that he would supervise the work personally.
He also took notice of the shortage of doctors and paramedics and accorded approval to a programme to improve 85 THQ hospitals in the province. The CM directed the health department to devise a roadmap to overcome the shortage of doctors and paramedics.
The OPDs should be improved in the minimum possible time to provide every possible facility to the patients, he said and regretted that the cleanliness arrangements were unsatisfactory during his visits to hospitals.
A comprehensive plan should be implemented for the cleanliness of the hospitals, he said.
The health secretary briefed the CM about the department's performance and improvement of healthcare facilities.
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Meanwhile, the chief minister sought a report from the provincial health secretary about air conditioners not functioning at Punjab Institute of Cardiology. He directed the official to resolve the issue without delay. Emergency steps should be taken on a priority basis in view of the patients' suffering in hot and humid weather, he said and ordered the identification of those responsible for negligence after an inquiry and initiation of disciplinary action over the incident.
A delegation of Ittehad-e-Tanzeemat Madaris Pakistan led by Maulana Muhammad Hanif Jalandhari also called on Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz.
The CM said on the occasion that the religious scholars had always guided the nation in every hour of trial, adding that they had also played a commendable role against the menace of terrorism and sectarianism. The government appreciates their services on the intellectual front and consultations with the Ulema will continue in future, he said and added that a joint committee would be constituted for further consultations and to solve the problems of the Ulema.
The committee would submit its recommendations, he added.
Law Minister Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan was also present.
In another development, the chief minister sought a report from the commissioner of Rawalpindi about loss of lives due to the emission of poisonous gas in a well and ordered an inquiry into the incident. The CM extended heartfelt sympathies to the bereaved family and directed that a report be submitted to him after investigations. Disciplinary action should also be taken against those responsible for negligence, he added.
Chief Minister Hamza also sought a report from the inspector general of police about the rape and murder of a child in Mandi Bahauddin. He ordered that strict action against the murderer.
The hardened criminals deserve severe punishment, he emphasised and extended sympathies to the bereaved family while assuring the provision of justice to them.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 29th, 2022.