KARACHI, Dec 28: Although the ongoing violent protests and rioting has considerably brought down the number of patients arriving at various hospitals in the city, they have also badly affected the movement of doctors and paramedics supposed to be on duty in different shifts.

A very thin attendance of doctor, nurses and other staff could make it on Friday hampering the normal service delivery. The worst-hit appeared to be patients admitted to the hospitals as many of them required a constant or periodic check up. Those arriving for emergency treatment have also been suffering due to the absence of a large number of medical staff.

Unfortunately, the staff who somehow managed to reach their place of duty on the second day of mourning for the PPP leader, had to face fury of the emotionally charged activists.

In a similar situation, a group of protesters resorted to pelting stones at the Lyari General Hospital on Friday morning creating panic among the staff, who had to run to safety.

At the JPMC, mobs of angry and shocked protesters had almost forced closure of its emergency and accident department before arrival of several injured people. A few doctors, who were about to take leave after completing their duty, realised their responsibility and agreed to prolong their stay to attend to the cases.

Meanwhile, senior medical professionals at various government hospitals have made a passionate appeal to citizens not to hinder movement of doctors, paramedics and other hospital staff so that the patients requiring immediate and essential medical assistance were not made to suffer.

They noted that activists armed with weapons dared to break into hospital only to create panic, fear and scare among the staff and patients, besides those accompanying the patients.—APP