Money games: Doctors prefer private practice over govt hospital
Technical staff says doctors don’t show up because the premises are filthy, janitors on strike since February.
Technical staff says doctors don’t show up because the premises are filthy, janitors on strike since February. PHOTO: FILE
MIRANSHAH:
Bakhmala Bibi walked out of Miranshah Agency Headquarters Hospital cursing the on-duty doctor sitting in the outpatient department (OPD).
She was angry. Her grip on her grandson’s hand grew strong as she cursed the doctor again. She said that she had no money and had told the doctor so but he insisted that she should go now and bring her grandson to his private clinic in Miranshah Bazaar for a check-up in the evening.
Bakhmala, who is well into her 80s, said she had been waiting in line with 50 others since 8am, which is when the OPD should open. At 10:30am, the doctors started arriving and explained that due to the lack of medical equipment at the government hospital, she would have to take her grandson to a private clinic for the check-up. “I just have Rs30 in my pocket,” she said. “How can I take this child to a private clinic?”
The situation wasn’t much different for Khyal Muhammad who came all the way from Ghulam Khan tehsil to Miranshah. His son has had a fever for a week and instead of prescribing medication, the doctor just asked him to bring the boy over to his private clinic in the bazaar.
Jan Muhammad came to the hospital to get some medicine for his wife. She gave birth three days ago and due to the absence of a lady doctor at the hospital, she gave birth supervised by nurses and was suffering from complications. A lady doctor had eventually taken her in at her private clinic but since the costs had been running so high, Jan had been thinking about bringing his wife to the hospital but he cannot find a lady doctor to look after her.
When Eid Gul came to Miranshah, he took his pregnant wife to a private clinic for an examination but then, due to financial restraints, he started taking her to the OPD at the hospital. Once there, his wife was told by nurses that the doctor won’t attend to her at the OPD but at her clinic after 12pm. According to Gul, the OPD usually runs from 10:30am to noon and during that time, the hospital’s technical staff prescribes medicines to the patients.
A member of the technical staff who wished to remain anonymous said doctors were not showing up for work because the hospital was dirty. “No one is cleaning up as all the ward boys and janitors have been on strike since one of their own was kidnapped in February,” he said.
The hospital’s labour room was a bloody mess as Marjan Wazir’s wife was giving birth. “There were bandages everywhere and blood, even human feces,” he said. “If I had the money, I would have never brought my wife here. These hospitals were made for us, for free treatment.” He added that around 7pm, the nurses informed him that they did not have electricity or gas in the labour room so he had to go and borrow an emergency light from his relative and buy a gas cylinder from the bazaar.
The medical superintendent, Muhammad Ali, said this is not the first time he has had to ask doctors to show up or give warning, but no one listens. He added that most of the doctors were locals and do not show up for duty because of the tribal system which is in place. He claims that if he took action against the doctors, the tribal elders can take action against him and many had influence in the agency’s political administration.
Khayal Jan, a patient at the hospital, said that everyone at the hospital was suffering at the hands of the doctors. He added that the hospital was close to the political administration’s office but no one had bothered to visit or do anything about their situation.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 19th, 2014.
Bakhmala Bibi walked out of Miranshah Agency Headquarters Hospital cursing the on-duty doctor sitting in the outpatient department (OPD).
She was angry. Her grip on her grandson’s hand grew strong as she cursed the doctor again. She said that she had no money and had told the doctor so but he insisted that she should go now and bring her grandson to his private clinic in Miranshah Bazaar for a check-up in the evening.
Bakhmala, who is well into her 80s, said she had been waiting in line with 50 others since 8am, which is when the OPD should open. At 10:30am, the doctors started arriving and explained that due to the lack of medical equipment at the government hospital, she would have to take her grandson to a private clinic for the check-up. “I just have Rs30 in my pocket,” she said. “How can I take this child to a private clinic?”
The situation wasn’t much different for Khyal Muhammad who came all the way from Ghulam Khan tehsil to Miranshah. His son has had a fever for a week and instead of prescribing medication, the doctor just asked him to bring the boy over to his private clinic in the bazaar.
Jan Muhammad came to the hospital to get some medicine for his wife. She gave birth three days ago and due to the absence of a lady doctor at the hospital, she gave birth supervised by nurses and was suffering from complications. A lady doctor had eventually taken her in at her private clinic but since the costs had been running so high, Jan had been thinking about bringing his wife to the hospital but he cannot find a lady doctor to look after her.
When Eid Gul came to Miranshah, he took his pregnant wife to a private clinic for an examination but then, due to financial restraints, he started taking her to the OPD at the hospital. Once there, his wife was told by nurses that the doctor won’t attend to her at the OPD but at her clinic after 12pm. According to Gul, the OPD usually runs from 10:30am to noon and during that time, the hospital’s technical staff prescribes medicines to the patients.
A member of the technical staff who wished to remain anonymous said doctors were not showing up for work because the hospital was dirty. “No one is cleaning up as all the ward boys and janitors have been on strike since one of their own was kidnapped in February,” he said.
The hospital’s labour room was a bloody mess as Marjan Wazir’s wife was giving birth. “There were bandages everywhere and blood, even human feces,” he said. “If I had the money, I would have never brought my wife here. These hospitals were made for us, for free treatment.” He added that around 7pm, the nurses informed him that they did not have electricity or gas in the labour room so he had to go and borrow an emergency light from his relative and buy a gas cylinder from the bazaar.
The medical superintendent, Muhammad Ali, said this is not the first time he has had to ask doctors to show up or give warning, but no one listens. He added that most of the doctors were locals and do not show up for duty because of the tribal system which is in place. He claims that if he took action against the doctors, the tribal elders can take action against him and many had influence in the agency’s political administration.
Khayal Jan, a patient at the hospital, said that everyone at the hospital was suffering at the hands of the doctors. He added that the hospital was close to the political administration’s office but no one had bothered to visit or do anything about their situation.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 19th, 2014.