MARDAN: City Mayor Himayatullah Mayar Advocate here on Wednesday urged the provincial health minister and senior officials of the health department to revoke the notification permitting surgical specialists to perform surgeries on private patients during morning hours at Mardan Medical Complex Hospital.

The city mayor stated in a letter sent to the provincial health minister and other relevant authorities that timely action should be taken to cancel the notification. He mentioned that it had come to his attention that the director of the Medical Teaching Institution (MTI) Mardan had issued a notification, permitting private surgeries to be conducted during morning hours under the Institution-Based Practice (IBP).

He noted that this practice was causing unjust delays for poor patients, as they were being scheduled for surgeries—including ENT, general surgeries, gynaecology, eye procedures, and other similar operations—with waiting times of up to six months.

He claimed that it was negatively impacting poor patients, as those under the Sehat Sahulat programme were not being prioritised for timely treatment. Furthermore, it contradicted government policies, as the notification undermined the government’s efforts to provide accessible and timely healthcare services to the poor.

Himayatullah Mayar alleged that this situation was causing unnecessary suffering for patients and appeared to be a misuse of institutional authority. He added that the relevant authorities must cancel the aforementioned notification.

City mayor also requested that a thorough inquiry be conducted to assess the impact of this decision and ensure accountability.

Published in Dawn, December 19th, 2024