RAWALPINDI: After recent incidents of brawl between patients’ attendants and doctors, the Holy Family Hospital (HFH) has constituted a Rapid Response Force to deal with such situation in future.

Besides, the hospital management will install 20 close circuit TV (CCTV) cameras in and around emergency department and increase the strength of doctors and nursing staff in evening and night shifts.

Talking to Dawn, HFH Medical Superintendent Dr. Shahzad Ahmed said that the basic purpose of taking such steps was to avoid such incidents in future and solve the matters within hospital instead of referring them to the local police.

The decision has been taken after recent quarrel incidents between staff and attendants

He said that deputy medical superintendent administration was leading the Rapid Response Force which consisted of two security supervisors, two private guards, a policeman and nursing in-charge on duty.

He said the force would respond to any altercation between the staff and attendants within five minutes and resolve the problem between them.

He said that a special counter had been set up where a patient or attendant could register complaints. A telephone number of the Punjab Health Department has been displayed at the centre for the convenience of attendants to lodge their complaints with the department.

He said that as many as 29 CCTV cameras had been installed in the hospital’s sensitive areas while 20 more cameras would be installed in emergency department, gynae and children wards.

The MS said that all the security men and staff of the hospital would wear uniform.

The MS of the hospital said that the CCTV footage would help the administration in getting to the bottom of a dispute.

“Recently, we suspended a staff member misbehaving with a patient’s attendant. We took the decision after finding him guilty through CCTV footage,” he said.

To a question, he said that patients or public representative had not been included in the force.

However, he said they would ensure that doctors and nursing staff behave with patients and attendants properly and provide them better medical care.

He also requested the attendants to show patience in case of any untoward incident and during treatment given to their patient.

The death of two children in Benazir Bhutto hospital and a private hospital and dispute between doctors and an attendant of a patient at HFH created security concerns among the female doctors and patients in the hospital.

Young Doctors Association (YDA) Punjab Chairman Dr Haider Akhter told Dawn that insecure environment created unrest among doctors. “Tolerance should be promoted through awareness progammes,” he said.

He said there was a dire need of creating secure working environment for doctors.

He said security should be enhanced and complaint system should be improved and action should be taken against bogus complaints.

“The Rapid Response Force has already been established in the hospital but it will only be useful if all stakeholders show tolerance. Doctors are now reluctant of providing treatment to critical patients in fear of reaction by the attendants,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2018