MULTAN, March 20: Doctors of the Nishtar Hospital observed strike on Wednesday against the initiation of disciplinary action against their 13 colleagues.

The Multan chapter president of the Pakistan Medical Association, Dr Shiasta Samad, told newsmen at a press conference that the strike would continue on Thursday.

“Prof Eice Muhammad is a disputed person. He is a physician and has no knowledge about anaesthesia equipment. Before conducting the inquiry, Prof Eice was determined to recommend disciplinary action against the doctors,” she alleged.

She said that Dr Mehdi Hassan Mumtaz and Dr Tehseenul Hassan found in their inquiries that patients died because there was a fault in the anaesthesia machine.

She said that all operation theatres in the Nishtar Hospital have no equipment to check the performance of the machines installed there. This was brought to the notice of the health department but to no avail.

She urged the Punjab governor to order another inquiry by anaesthesia specialists and engineers.

Punjab Governor Lt-Gen Khalid Maqbool (retired) ordered on Tuesday initiation of disciplinary action against 11 doctors, a nurse and the workshop in charge of the hospital under the Punjab Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance 2000.

The action was ordered on the basis of an inquiry conducted by Allama Iqbal Medical College and Jinnah Hospital, Lahore, chief executive Prof Eice Muhammad.

Four patients had died at the hospital in June last year as a result of mixing of nitrous oxide oxygen gas through defective anaesthesia machine.

Prof Eice had said in his report that the tragedy occurred owing to the old, defective and highly dangerous anaesthesia machine and its poor maintenance by the hospital.

He charged doctors, nursing staff, operation theatre attendant, in charge repair workshop for their carelessness.

He also held professor of anaesthesia, chief executive and medical superintendent of Nishtar Medical College and Hospital responsible for their ineffective supervision.— Nouman