LARKANA: A three-member committee was formed on Saturday to probe an incident in which a patient was allegedly maltreated in Shaikh Zayed Hospital for Women as doctors’ organisations held protests at the Chandka Medical College and condemned the practice of maligning and blackmailing doctors on one or the other pretext.

Chandka Medical College’s principal Prof Dr Gulzar Ahmed Shaikh constituted the committee in the light of a letter he received from the medical superintendent of CMCH on Aug 17 regarding maltreatment of a female patient who was operated upon in obstetrics and gynaecology unit-III of Shaikh Zayed Hospital for Women.

The committee was to be headed by Prof Dr Ali Akbar Bhand, dean of faculty of surgery and allied sciences at Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University, and Prof Dr Safia Maqsood, chairperson of gynaecology and obstetrics at Ghulam Mohammad Mahar Medical College Sukkur, and Dr Saeed Ahmed Memon, additional MS of CMCH, were members of the committee.

The committee was tasked to probe the incident, find out the facts, fix responsibility and submit report within five days. The patient’s relatives had accused doctors of negligence during her admission to the hospital. They demonstrated and demanded probe into the incident.

Meanwhile, doctors associated with Pakistan Medical Association, Young Doctors Association and Young Consultants Association on Saturday held a general body meeting at the college and then demonstrated at the college’s gate.

Dr Ikram Tunio, former president of PMA Pakistan, Dr Dayali Gul, Prof Dr Fozia Kashif, Dr Fahad Jibran Siyal, president of SMBBMU Teachers Association Dr Raja Lakhir, Dr Ihsan Malik and others criticised certain organisations that had developed a habit to accuse, blackmail, extort money from and issue threats to doctors under different pretexts.

They condemned the practice and said that a group of “blackmailers” levelled allegations on doctors and then extorted heavy amount of money from them. It was a conspiracy as recently relatives of the patient had accused the in-charge of unit-III at Shaikh Zayed Hospital for Woman of carrying out wrong operation on the patient, they said.

The patient later died in a Karachi hospital. The fact was that the said doctor was not present at the hospital that day but even then they were blaming her for the wrong operation, they said.

“We condemn it as doctors always try their best to save patients’ lives. We are ready to face any inquiry committee in this context and will be bound to accept its decision,” they said.

They warned of closing down all public and private hospitals and staging demonstrations if the practice against doctors continued.

They said they would chalk out future plan of protest on Monday.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2021