Surprise hospital visit: CM’s raid results in multiple suspensions
Safwat Ghayur Shaheed Memorial Children Hospital found in deplorable state.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak.
Officials of Safwat Ghayur Shaheed Memorial Children Hospital, including the medical superintendent (MS) and his deputy, were suspended for being absent from duty and mismanagement after a midnight raid by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister (CM) Pervez Khattak.
The CM was accompanied by special assistant Ziaullah Afridi, parliamentary secretary Mian Khaliqur Rehman, MPA Ishtiaq Urmar and MNA Imran Khattak late Wednesday.
During the raid, the officials found only one doctor on duty while all other hospital officials, including the ambulance driver, guard and sweeper were absent. There was no arrangement to give free medicines to patients and attendants were compelled to go to the market to purchase them.
Furthermore, the doctor present at the emergency ward and dispensary officials were performing their duty without proper safety arrangements and uniforms.
Later the CM called MS Dr Ihsan Turabi to the hospital to explain the mismanagement but he made excuses to cover the dire state of affairs. The hospital premises were found to be filthy and there were no proper cleanliness arrangements.
Khattak then suspended the MS, his deputy, the dispenser, storekeeper, ambulance driver, sweeper and guard, among other officials, and ordered their salaries be withheld. A notification has also been issued from his office in this regard.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2014.
The CM was accompanied by special assistant Ziaullah Afridi, parliamentary secretary Mian Khaliqur Rehman, MPA Ishtiaq Urmar and MNA Imran Khattak late Wednesday.
During the raid, the officials found only one doctor on duty while all other hospital officials, including the ambulance driver, guard and sweeper were absent. There was no arrangement to give free medicines to patients and attendants were compelled to go to the market to purchase them.
Furthermore, the doctor present at the emergency ward and dispensary officials were performing their duty without proper safety arrangements and uniforms.
Later the CM called MS Dr Ihsan Turabi to the hospital to explain the mismanagement but he made excuses to cover the dire state of affairs. The hospital premises were found to be filthy and there were no proper cleanliness arrangements.
Khattak then suspended the MS, his deputy, the dispenser, storekeeper, ambulance driver, sweeper and guard, among other officials, and ordered their salaries be withheld. A notification has also been issued from his office in this regard.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2014.