OKARA, April 5 Shortage of medical and paramedical staff is badly affecting the working of Okara DHQ Hospital.

To lodge their protest over the issue, hundreds of citizens staged a rally the other day.

Led by former naib nazam Pir Abrar Husain Jamali, the rally urged the Punjab government to fill vacant posts besides providing missing facilities to the hospital.

Speaking to participants, Jamali said facilities in indoor and outdoor wards were highly inadequate considering the number of patients visiting the hospital.

He said patients' misery had been compounded by up to 16 hours loadshedding. He said the Punjab government and the district coordination officer must take notice of the situation.

DHQ Hospital MS Dr Nazir Husian told Dawn that 18 vacancies of male and female doctors and 50 seats of lower staff were vacant.

He said the hospital lacked resources to counter up to 16-hour loadshedding. “The hospital administration is in contact with the authorities concerned to overcome this problem.”

He said the Patients Welfare Society was bearing expenses of three-hour generator operation daily.