CHITRAL: In a strange move, medical superintendent of the district headquarters hospital, Chitral, Dr Akbar Shah has asked seven women medical officers of the hospital to perform duty on rotation basis in tehsil headquarters hospital, Drosh, which is also his hometown. The instructions were given through an office order.

A source in the health department said that the two hospitals had no administrative relationship with each other because according to the Local Government Act 2013, all DHQ hospitals were non-devolved while the THQ hospitals and basic health units were devolved to the district governments.

He said that the MS could not pass orders of deputing or posting of the employees of the DHQ hospital to another hospital, which was under the purview of the district government. He said that the DHQ hospital was directly run by the provincial government.

Asked to work at Drosh hospital on rotation

He said that as per procedure a doctor was first transferred from the DHQ hospital by the competent authority of provincial government to another hospital within the district or placed at the disposal of the district health officer for further posting.

Meanwhile, former Jughoor village nazim Sajjad Ahmed said that decision of the MS would affect service delivery at the DHQ hospital which catered to the healthcare needs of over half a million population of the district from Arandu to Baroghil.

He said that the hospital was already facing shortage of doctors and district specialists where over 40 posts were lying vacant. He said that the government should fill the positions of women medical officers in Drosh THQ hospital instead of disturbing the doctors of the DHQ hospital.

When contacted, Dr Akbar Shah said that the temporary arrangement of women medical officers for Drosh hospital had been made on need basis on the direction of the district health officer. He added that the decision was taken keeping in view the need for lady doctors in Drosh where people had threatened to go on strike.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2019