NAWABSHAH, May 5 Hundreds of specialist cadre doctors of the Sindh Health Department have been deprived of promotions for the last 20 years.

The three cadres of doctors working in the department include teaching, general and specialist. The first two categories are getting promotions but the third remains deprived due to improper service structure.

Figures reveal around 300 doctors in specialist cadre are working in the BPS-18 for last 20 years though hundreds of posts are lying vacant.

Two specialist cadre doctors are working in the BPS-18 for last two years; six for 18 years; 48 for 17 years; 17 for 16 years; 80 for 15 years; 39 for 14 years; 51 for 13 years; 16 for 11 years and 76 for last 10 years

Total 300 specialist cadre doctors, including physicians, surgeons, gynaecologists, paediatricians, ophthalmologist, anaesthetists, ENT, chest, dermatologist, pathologist, radiologist, cardiologist, orthopaedic surgeon and psychiatrists are working in government hospitals and health centres in the province.

A lady doctor requesting anonymity told Dawn that she joined the Health Department as medical officer in BPS-17 through the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) in 1989 and was promoted to BPS-18 after completing diploma in paediatrics and appearing in SPSC examinations in 1993-94. Her career as specialist in paediatrician in a teaching hospital continued but till today she was serving in the BPS-18 whereas other colleagues were now in the BPS 20.

Dr Ali Nawaz Yousfani, a paediatrician working in the Civil Hospital Badin, was appointed as child specialist in 1990 and working in grade BPS-18 for last 19 years. His increment is stopped since last two years for hitting the pay-scale ceiling.

Affected doctors have demanded of the Sindh chief minister to take notice and direct secretary health for maintaining proper service structure for due promotions. A former health official said that doctors working in rural areas should not only get due benefits and promotions but extra facilities for coming to these places as hardly any doctor agrees to it.