PESHAWAR, July 24: Dozens of employees of the teaching hospitals in the city are working as private servants of senior doctors, while drawing salaries from the hospitals, sources told Dawn on Saturday.
"We are short of staff because about 20 employees, including ward orderlies, sweepers, cook, dish-washers, midwives and peons have been working in the homes of doctors," said an official at one of the hospitals.
He said that they get salaries from the hospitals, but work in the homes of senior doctors. He said that a midwife had been working as housemaid with a deputy medical superintendent (DMS) for the last five years.
"She didn't come to the hospital for duty, but received salary from the hospital every month on regular basis," he said.
Head of the midwives at one of the hospitals said that staff shortage had adversely affected the health care in the wards, but conceded that she was not in a position to lodge complaint against the DMS.
"Many other midwives have been working in the houses of medical superintendents, DMS and resident medical officers (RMOs), but being subordinates, we cannot raise objection on such practices," said an office-bearer of the provincial paramedical association.
He said that a ward orderly had been working in the house of a retired chief executive of one of the teaching hospitals.
Likewise, a dispenser has been working with a chief executive, but get his salary from the hospital.
Another ward orderly is working as a driver with an anaesthetist, despite his job description to shift the patients to and from the operation theatre.
"We are short of staff but cannot say anything because the anaesthetist is our boss and his displeasure would land us in hot water," said officer in charge of the operation theatre of the same hospital.
An official said that the hospital administration has promoted junior persons as heads of the ward orderlies and midwives, who took care of the officials of the administration.
"At times, we have to depute one ward orderly for two wards.
We have enough staff, but many of them worked in the houses of doctors," said an office-bearer of the class IV staff association at one of the hospitals.