LAHORE: Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has directed all the medical superintendents of all the tehsil and district headquarters hospitals in the province to ensure that emergency wards of their respective facilities are up to the mark within 15 days.

She was presiding over a meeting held at the primary and secondary healthcare department here on Saturday, where department’s Secretary Ali Bahadur Qazi briefed her on a programme to revamp these hospitals, a handout said.

“Revamping of the DHQ and THQ hospitals across the province must be expedited,” the minister ordered the department. She said that the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) should ensure that all helplines for the public should be working and call centre staff should be well conversant with the issues so that people might be guided in fair manner.

“No compromise on merit in recruitment and promotions in the health department” she said.

Expressing her satisfaction over availability of free medicines at the public health facilities, she also warned that no lapse in this regard would be tolerated.

Dr Rashid also ordered implementation of the family planning programme in letter and spirit.

“Robo Call Service is a good initiative to provide preventive health advices,” she said, adding that the service should also be in both Punjabi and Seraiki languages.

She expressed her displeasure at reported incidents of manhandling of patients’ attendants at some public hospitals and warned that “either hospital staff mend their behaviour or look for another job”.

She pledged the government would make every effort to win trust of public on government health facilities.

Published in Dawn, September 2nd, 2018