GUJRAT: The district health authority in Gujrat has been facing an acute shortage of doctors since the recruitment through walk-in interviews on an ad hoc basis was stopped by the health department.

Dozens of seats of medical officers (MOs), women medical officers (WMOs) and others have been lying vacant due to the procedural hitches because the approval of the provincial health department is required even to fill the seats on an ad hoc basis, said an official of the district health authority. Moreover, he added, even the adjustment of the available MOs and WMOs at the local level could also not be made by the authority to fill the crucial vacancies. He said such a situation had been causing a number of issues for the local health authorities.

The activists of Jamaat-i-Islami had also been staging protest demonstrations against the unavailability of the MOs, WMOs and other staff at the Jalalpur Jattan Civil Hospital for more than a month and the party had also set up a protest camp outside the hospital. The senior officials of Gujrat district administration have assured these protesters on a number of occasions about filling the vacant posts though even the health authority could not reshuffle the doctors from other health facilities of the district due to the restrictions imposed by the government.

Moreover, the slot of medical superintendent of the Shabbir Sharif Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Kunjah, has also been lying vacant for the last many months. Official sources said the deputy commissioner had appointed a senior doctor, Azhar Ihsan, of the THQ Hospital as an officiating MS of the hospital but the previous secretary health not only immediately removed him but also conveyed his displeasure to the DC. Chief Executive Officer Health Dr Zakir Rana is looking after the Kunjah THQ hospital in the absence of regular MS.

Similarly, there has been a shortage of staff at Sara-i-Alamgir THQ Hospital since long.

A senior official questioned the expertise of the health authority and its CEO when they could not function the health affairs at the local level as all the powers rest with the secretary health. He said at least recruitment of the ad hoc doctors through walk-in interviews should be allowed as a stopgap arrangement to run the hospitals in Gujrat as well as other districts of the province.

It is learnt that the Gujrat CEO health had requested to the secretary primary and secondary healthcare more than a month ago to approve recruitment of at least eight doctors and four supporting staff for Jalalpur Jattan Civil Hospital but no progress had so far been made in this regard.

DC Safdar Virk said he was aware of the difficulties being faced by the local health authorities and the administration would bring the situation to the notice of high-ups at the Punjab government. He hoped that situation would get better soon.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2024