ISLAMABAD: Employees of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) on Saturday decided they will only strike for three hours a day due to the problems thousands of patients had to face during this week and so that patients who come from far flung areas can get treatment.

From Monday onwards, the strike will be held from 8am to 11am and employees are considering holding the protest at D-Chowk.

Pims employees have been demanding that the hospital be separated from the Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto University since Monday.

Decision to change the strike plan has been taken due to problems being faced by patients, says Dr Asfandyar Khan

For six days, the outpatient departments and laboratories have been closed, 200 operations a day have been postponed and some 10,000 patients a day are facing problems due to the strike.

Accompanied by the Minister Capital Administration and Development Division Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Friday, the employees met with Law Minister Zahid Hamid who assured them a summary will be sent to Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in order to seek approval for tabling a bill in parliament for separating the hospital from the university.

Spokesperson for the Pims Employees Association, Dr Asfandyar Khan told Dawn the decision to change the strike plan was taken due to problems being faced by patients and as a good gesture because the government has shown an interest in addressing the issue.

“We expect the government to pass the bill in the current parliamentary session. We request the premier to intervene and address the issue for good,” he said.

Dr Khan said if the protestors are not allowed in D-Chowk, they will protest at the National Press Club and that some of the employees will stay back at the hospital to perform duties.

He added that Pims Vice Chancellor Dr Javed Akram had called a meeting of faculty members at 11am on Monday.

However, Prof Haider Sherazi and other faculty members had participated in the protest on Saturday and announced they will not be attending the meeting.

Employees have locked the VC secretariat for the last many days and are saying he is the reason the hospital and university have not been separated.

Dr Akram has strongly opposed the strike and said the University Syndicate had in Oct 2016 passed a resolution for the separation of the hospital and university and that he has nothing to do with the matter.

Published in Dawn, October 8th, 2017