PESHAWAR, Jan 12: Some doctors at the city's teaching hospitals send patients to their own or designated medical stores to earn extra money, patients and health workers claim.

"An orthopaedic surgeon sends his patients to the medical store owned by his brother where they are charged exorbitantly," said an operation theatre assistant. According to him, the surgeon doesn't operate on the patients who buy drugs from other medical stores.

A few months ago, the surgeon refused to carry out surgical procedure on a patient precisely for the same reason. "The patient was put on the operation table and given anaesthesia, but was not operated upon," he said. The patient later approached the provincial health minister and lodged a complaint.

The minister suspended a senior registrar but spared the surgeon. "The minister didn't know the actual situation. In fact, it was the consultant surgeon who had prevented the senior registrar from operating on the patient," said a doctor at the hospital.

The surgeon, the doctor claimed, sent 35 out of a total 250 patients from the ward to his private hospital last month alone. "He prescribes drugs to all patients himself and diverts them to a medical store located in Soekarno Chowk, Khyber Bazaar.

Similarly, the surgeon doesn't operate on the HBS- and HCV-positive patients at the hospital. "He tells the HBS- and HCV-positive patients that there is no arrangement for their operation at the hospital so they better visit his clinic," said a house officer.

Junior doctors, who object to the unethical practice of surgeons, are transferred from the ward, said the sources. "I had admitted my mother to the hospital but was asked by a dispenser to visit the surgeon's clinic," said a man from Charsadda. "I paid Rs10,000 for investigation, X-rays and drugs in addition to Rs12,000 for the operation," he added.

Another doctor is known to send patients from a teaching hospital to his own medical store situated three kilometres away. "Those who refuse to bring medicines from the designated store are denied treatment," said Ajab Khan.

"I purchased the drugs from a nearby store by paying Rs6,000 but the doctor ordered me to return them and buy them from his store. There, I had to cough up Rs8,000 for the same medicines," he added.

An ophthalmologist sends patients to his brother's medical store where they are charged almost double the amount, claimed a dispenser. If the patients buy drugs from other shops, they face the doctor's wrath, he added.

A source said that a surgeon was in the habit of prescribing more drugs than required. "He resells the leftover drugs after operating upon his patients," said the source.

Chief executive of a teaching hospital said that he had launched investigation into one such case. He conceded that this unethical practice prevailed among some doctors, but said there was no evidence upon which action could be taken.