SAHIWAL: Punjab Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department Minister Prof Javed Akram has said two angiography machines will be provided to the Sahiwal Institute of Cardiology (SIC), besides making two operation theatres functional there.

Prof Javed Akram announced this during a visit to Sahiwal Teaching Hospital (STH) on Friday. He said improving infrastructure for basic health facilities, and overcoming the shortage of doctors and paramedical staff at the public sector hospitals across Punjab are priorities of the government.

The minister said the establishment of the Institute of Cardiology for 6.7 million residents of Sahiwal division is one of the leading healthcare initiatives by Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi.

About the shortage of doctors and paramedics staff at the local hospital, he said all vacant posts of these professionals would be filled.Sahiwal Medical College (SMC) Principal Prof Muhammad Imran Hasan, giving a briefing to the minster said although the district headquarters (DHQ) hospital has been upgraded to a teaching facility, more doctors and paramedical staff are needed to run the 1,150-bed hospital.

Minister says vacant posts in hospitals to be filled

He said the SMC’s budget must be increased because still it was getting a budget that was meant for a 377-beds DHQ hospital.

The principal said posts of 352 doctors and consultants, 368 stipendiary posts (FCPS, house officers), 412 nurses, eight paramedics, 11 para professions (Grade 16 and above), 205 clerical staff (Grade 5-15) and 282 lower staff (Garde 1-4) have been sanctioned for the STH.However, he said, the hospital was working with just 231 doctors and consultants and 275FCPS, house officers, besides facing an acute shortage of other medical professionals and staffers.

The SMC has a total 1,638 sanctioned posts in different categories, but only 1,196 have been filled so far, while 442 posts are lying vacant.The STH is daily handling 2,000, 265, and 1,064 patients in its OPD, IPD, and emergency wards, respectively. Hospital sources say that STH management had demanded 480 new posts for the new surgical block, out which only 32 were sanctioned to date. While elaborating on financial constraints being faced by the SMC, the principal said it needed Rs691,000,000 in additional funds for medicines, X-ray films, and repair of medicaland lab equipment and machinery.

Published in Dawn, November 4th, 2023