ISLAMABAD: After the government failed to approach employees of the hospitals, the Federal Health Alliance (FHA) has decided to call a meeting of representatives of all hospitals of the federal capital on Tuesday (today) to announce further line of action.
It is worth mentioning that last week healthcare workers of at least five public sector hospitals in Islamabad rejected the recent budget, which did not offer them any incentives, such as disparity reduction allowance announced for other government employees.
They were also upset with the government’s decision not to restore the health risk allowance, suspended in 2014.
The allowance, which was equal to a basic salary, was introduced by the PPP government in 2011 but withdrawn by the PML-N government in 2014.
They gave a deadline of March 16 for the government to approach them and give assurance that their demands would be met otherwise they would be left with no option but to stage protests and ultimately lockdown the hospitals.
FHA Chairman Chaudhry Qamar Javed Gujar, while talking to Dawn, said the ministry did not bother to approach them which showed its lack of interest in the issues of the health sector and provision of uninterrupted medical treatment to the patients who visit hospitals of Islamabad from the twin cities, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and some areas of Punjab.
“We held a meeting in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) on Monday and it was decided that a meeting of representatives of all hospitals of the federal capital will be called on Tuesday (today) to announce a joint strategy,” Mr Gujar said.
Those who attended the meeting included President FHA Raza Mohammad Soomro, Raja Rabnawaz and others, he added.
He said a number of departments, including the PM’s Office, had received a raise in their salaries from 80 per cent to 300 per cent, but the hospital employees were ignored in the federal budget.
“Employees of Pims, Polyclinic, National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine (NIRM), Capital Hospital, Federal General Hospital, and staff of the District Health Office are united. It is unfortunate that even the disparity reduction allowance (DRA) was not announced for the health workers. On the other hand employees of other ministries have received a 30pc DRA,” Mr Gujar said.
“Do not push us to the limit where we do not have any choice but to lock down hospitals. We know the critical condition in which patients arrive in hospitals but unfortunately, the government has no idea about their situation. It is unfortunate that the salaries of ministers and advisers have been increased, but health staff are being deprived of their due right,” he added.
Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2025
