SAHIWAL: Three fake doctors were caught treating patients and taking money from them in three wards of the Sahiwal Teaching Hospital (STH).

The scam was revealed during the routine visits of the wards by Additional Medical Superintendent (AMS) Dr Muzamil and Deputy Medical Superintendent (DMS) Dr Adeela during the last 24 hours. The fake doctors were identified as Zainul Abideen from Kot Khadim Ali Shah, Faizan Akhter from Chak No 3, Daliyain, and Hafiz Muhammad Touqeer from Kot Abdul Jaleel, Dipalpur.

Reports said AMS Dr Muzamil was on a tour of the wards when he encountered Zainul Abideen who claimed to be an ENT specialist.

The security personnel in the ward informed the AMS that the doctor was on a routine check-up round. However, the AMS became suspicious and verified Zain’s identity, discovering that he was neither a medical student, medical assistant nor a doctor.

Zain was then captured and taken to the room of the medical superintendent (MS).

In a second incident, DMS Dr Adeela was on a round when she came across Faizan in doctors’ outfit attending patients in various wards, claiming to be a house officer. Upon inquiry from the patients and their attendants, it was revealed that he was a fake doctor who was extorting money from the patients and their attendants by promising consultations from senior doctors.

In the third case, Hafiz Touqeer was found checking patients while claiming to be Dr Shoaib, a postgraduate resident (PGR) in the children’s ward. Rana Abdul Basit, a resident of Barkat Town, and Nadeem Shoukat, a resident of Chak 92/6-R, reported to the police Hafiz Touqeer had taken Rs5,000 from them for check-ups and medicines taken from the hospital pharmacy.

The hospital security staff caught the fake doctors and handed them over to Farid Town Police who booked them in three separate cases. They were booked in three FIRs registered on the complaint of Muhammad Latif, the security focal person at the hospital.

The STH is the leading health facility of the division and nobody knows since when the fake doctors had been working at the hospital. Many patients have raised concerns about the hospital’s management, which allowed these impostors to operate freely in the wards.

Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2024