PESHAWAR: Doctors staged a sit-it near the provincial assembly against what they called the government’s plan of mass transfers, setting up district and regional health authorities and non-implementation of Supreme Court’s directives regarding irregular appointments and promotions in medical teaching institutions.

The weeklong strike being observed on the call of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Doctors’ Council was deferred for a fortnight after assurance by a six-member parliamentary committee comprising treasury and opposition to the doctors regarding resolution of their demands.

Reports from Swabi, Buner, Abbottabad, Malakand, Mardan, Charsadda and other districts say that state-run hospitals didn’t offer services to patients owing to the doctors’ strike. The private clinics, however, remained open in Peshawar and elsewhere in the province.

The doctors have been protesting against the proposed law meant to grant financial and administrative autonomy to district hospitals. They said that government had not taken into confidence the stakeholders about the draft bill.

Doctors defer strike after MPAs’ assurance

Health officials said they had asked the doctors to enlist support of lawmakers to lobby against the proposed district and regional health authorities before its passage by the provincial assembly as it was the domain of the government to legislate in line with its manifesto. “The health department has nothing to do with the draft law, therefore, going on strike and making suffer only poor patients is unjustified,” they added.

The officials said that it was violation of the law recently notified by government to declare healthcare essential service so the protesters could face criminal cases. They said that like personnel of law enforcement agencies and security forces, the employees of health department couldn’t leave the places of their duty.

The department has asked the hospitals to send list of the protesting medics so that action could be taken against them for violating the law but no action has been taken so far against anyone.

The protest of doctors has affected the patients, who rely on public sector hospitals. Had the government convinced the doctors a few days ago, the patients wouldn’t have suffered for eight days owing to the strike.

The doctors said that health department was about to order mass transfers and the move would displace those already settled on their present positions for years while the latter’s version suggested that it was part of the rationalisation plan to place doctors where they were needed.

“A committee has been set up to look into the grievances of the complainants in a transparent manner,” said the officials.

Despite the strike, medical teaching institutions facilitated the patients The accident and emergency department of the hospitals remained open during the strike to provide care to critically-ill or injured people.

A press release said that senior consultants visited wards for morning rounds to examine patients and OPDs and operate on the patients at Khyber Teaching Hospital as usual.

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2019