ISLAMABAD: Healthcare workers on Monday closed vaccination centers and outpatient departments of the public health facilities in the federal capital in protest against nonpayment of health risk allowance.

When contacted, Grand Health Alliance Chairman Dr Asfandyar Khan confirmed to Dawn that the employees had decided to keep the vaccination centres closed till the resolution of allowance issue.

“Employees are also demanding that the Secretary NHS Amer Ashraf Khuwaja should be removed as funds for the allowance lapsed because of him,” he said.

Dr Asfandyar said over all Rs900 million, including Rs480 million allocated for the allowance, lapsed as Ministry of NHS failed to utilise them.

Funds are allocated, as per demand of the ministry in the budget, but amount lapses if not utilised (by the ministry) till end of the financial year.

While replying to a question, Dr Khan said though Dr Nausheen Hamid contacted them and tried to convince them to start working but employees were not ready to listen to her as she failed to address the issue despite promising several tims.

He said the allowance had to be given to doctors, nurses, paramedics, laboratory attendants, and field staff for undertaking multi-faceted activities including surveillance of areas for Covid but health secretary was trying to give the allowance to only those who served in the Covid wards.

“Fact is that all departments receive suspected Covid patients, and later a number of them turned out to be positive,” he said.

Last month National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser had taken notice of the issue and gave deadline to the health secretary to address it.

Later, the ministry sent letters to the hospitals stating that the list of those doctors and staff, who served in corona wards, be sent to the ministry which kept the issue still unresolved.

On Monday, vaccination centers remained closed at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Polyclinic and other hospitals.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2021