PESHAWAR: The health department has sought comments from all public sector medical teaching institutions regarding irregularities in appointments and shortage of facilities for seriously-ill patients to respond to the Supreme Court’s directives, according to sources.

The department sent a letter to medical directors, deans and hospital directors of Lady Reading Hospital, Khyber Teaching Hospital, Hayatabad Medical Complex, Ayub Teaching Hospital Abbottabad, Mardan Medical Complex, Qazi Hussain Ahmed Medical Complex Nowshera, Mufti Mahmood Memorial Complex (MMMC) Dera Ismail Khan and Khalifa Gul Nawaz Teaching Hospital Bannu on May 1 wherein it said that the human rights cell of Supreme Court had sought comments regarding an application submitted by Young Doctors Association (YDA).

It has outlined all points to be responded by the respective MTIs by May 5 for onwards submission to the court. The YDA has petitioned the court that the hospitals covered by the Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms Act, 2015, have seen steep rise in the fee structure of CT scan, echo, and ultrasound and other basic investigations.

YDA has petitioned court against ‘irregularities, lack of facilities’ in hospitals

Launching of the institution-based practice (IBP) under the MTI law has led to scarcity of beds, especially for those requiring hospitalisation in ICU and CCU, which is affecting general patients coming to OPD. The operation theatres have affected where the IBP patients are facilitated.

The MTIs have been asked to inform about user charges and the effect of IBP patients on non-paying patients.

The YDA alleges that dean of Ayub Medical College Abbottabad hasn’t resigned from civil service, which is violation of the law, and has been found guilty in many cases of irregularities besides owning a private hospital in front of AMC.

A senior professor had been appointed as dean in LRH, which didn’t have a college, whereas an assistant professor had been working as dean of MMMC Dera Ismail Khan from the last two years despite lacking the required qualification and administrative experience.

The MTIs have appointed people with qualification of MBA etc as bed, casualty and OPD managers and assistant managers, ignoring the health department’s hierarchy where DMS, who being doctors could do the same duties more appropriately. This is a financial burden on the government.

The association has also pointed out lack of life-saving medicines for emergency patients, shortage of ICU beds for critically-ill and injured patients and those suffering from cardiac ailments besides lack of neonatal care units, specialised units for children, burns, liver, kidney and bone marrow transplantation in the tertiary care hospitals and dearth of medical and surgical facilities in rural hospitals.

It has also said that nepotism and favouritism is rampant in MTIs. It says that most of the medical directors and hospital directors don’t have the required experience.

The association has also alleged that an inquiry regarding the illegal working of a supervisor at the behest of dean of HMC and Khyber Girls Medical College has been hushed up.

It has requested the apex court to take notice of the matter.

The health department has asked the HMC to submit a reply in this respect.

The health department is awaiting response of the MTIs, according to officials.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2018