LAHORE, June 10: After a month or so, paramedics will resume their duty in public hospitals of the province from Monday (today).

The Paramedical Staff Alliance Action Committee, Punjab, took the decision after a meeting with Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif at his Minar-i-Pakistan tent office on Sunday.

Some 31 days ago, paramedics had stopped performing their duty after closing down outpatient and indoors departments of public hospitals to protest against lack of interest on the part of health department to resolve their outstanding issues.

They had threatened to stop attending patients admitted to emergency departments and intensive care units of the hospitals from June 11 if their demands were not met.

Committee chairman Malik Munir Ahmad told reporters the chief minister gave a patient hearing to them and announced grant of Rs1,500 health risk allowance to BS-1 to BS-4 employees.

The chief minister also agreed to regularise the services of paramedics working in teaching hospitals and autonomous medical institutions under boards of management. Headed by the health department secretary, a seven-member committee was also made by the chief minister to finalise in three weeks recommendations to improve the service structure of BS-5 to BS-17 paramedical staff.

The paramedical staff delegation consisted of Arshad Butt, Malik Yousaf, Najeebur Rahman, Ashraf Khokhar, Aneesur Rahman, Yousaf Billa, Akbar Javaid and AD Kunwal while the chief minister was assisted by special adviser Khwaja Salman Rafiq and MPA Hafiz Mian Nauman.