PESHAWAR: Lady Reading Hospital medical director Dr Suleman Khan was removed by the board of governors of the province’s largest government health facility over failure to effectively manage the Covid-19 patients.The development comes as 10 more people died of coronavirus in the province increasing the tally of fatalities to 642.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded 581 new Covid-19 cases, which took its tally of confirmed patients to 15,787.Meanwhile, Dr Suleman told Dawn that his removal was unjustified and illogical and he would decide about whether to continue with service at the hospital after consulting colleagues and family.

He said he was asked to step down as MD by BoG chairman Dr Nausherwan Burki without citing a ‘good reason’.

“This [message] was conveyed to me through a WhatsApp call last night and in writing on Friday morning,” he told Dawn.

10 more Covid-19 deaths reported in province

According to Dr Suleman, he considered the action to be unjust, illegal and without a basis.

“I will be deciding about whether or not to continue as the assistant professor at the LRH rheumatology division after consultation,” he said.

The LRH Board of Governors, in a meeting on June 10, reviewed the clinical services and decided that a change in the leadership was necessary and requested Dr Suleman to step down immediately, said an order issued by the board.

It added that the MD was asked to continue to work on his original post as the assistant professor of rheumatology division in the hospital.

Dr Zafar Mahmood, assistant professor at the neurology department, was made the acting MD of the hospital.

Dr Suleiman was appointed as MD in Feb 2019 for a monthly salary of Rs500,000 for five years.

The officials said high mortality from Covid-19 at the LRH had embarrassed the health department’s high-ups.

They said the 1800-bed hospital had been under scathing criticism over the death of 250 patients despite the recovery of as many patients.

A health department report said of the new fatalities, four were reported in Peshawar, two each in Abbottabad and Battagram and one each in Lower Dir and Kohat.

It said 3,907 people had so far recovered from the virus in the province.

The report said 138 patients had recovered during the last 24 hours.

According to it, Peshawar district has recorded 196 new cases, Swat 111, Khyber 56, Charsadda 34, Upper Dir 35, Lower Dir 26, Bajaur and Battagram 27 each, Abbottabad 23, Mardan 21, Kohat and Dera Ismail Khan 13 each, Nowshera 10, Tank nine and Kurram seven.

Our correspondent from Batkhela adds: Two patients from Adenzai tehsil died of coronavirus at the district headquarters hospital on Friday.

One of them was 85 and the other 53. Both belonged to Badwan area.

The Rescue 1122 personnel dispatched the bodies to the respective native towns.

Our correspondent from Landi Kotal adds: District health officer of Khyber tribal district Dr Tariq Hayat and his six family members along with district emergency officer Malik Ishfaq Hussain tested positive for coronavirus in the day.

They all isolated themselves at home.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2020