LAHORE, Jan 31: The Punjab government on Friday admitted its failure in regulating the Health Department working and making it subservient to the masses.
Health minister Dr Tahir Ali Javed, while opening discussion on his department in the House, said people’s complaints were true that doctors were usually found absent from duties in state-run hospitals where medicines were also not available to the poor patients. He, however, pledged to make a difference within a year.
He said rural population would be the focus of his policy as he wanted to provide the health facilities in remote areas which were available in big cities. The facilities in cities would be brought at par with the developed countries in the later stage.
He said the government would encourage the doctors community by meeting their maximum requirements and needs, but the community would have to adhere to the ethics of the medical profession.
Opposition leader Qasim Zia said the minister himself had admitted that the authorities had been insensitive to the health sector during the last over 50 years. He said in civilized societies, police stations, courts and hospitals were taken as shelters of peace, but the situation was contrary to it in Pakistan.
Quoting a UN report, he said Pakistanis had become short-tempered and fallen prey to psychic problems due to wrongdoings of the rulers.
Referring to President Pervez Musharraf’s remarks that Pakistan society had become imperfect, he said the “unconstitutional” president did not mention the factors that had driven the society to this end. He said selfishness, hypocrisy, lust for power, rigging of elections, overnight formation of King’s parties and horse-trading had sicken the people.
He stressed the need for creating an atmosphere where supremacy of the constitution and law prevailed to ensure improved mental and thus physical health of the masses.
A PML-Q MPA, who was irked by the mention of Gen Musharraf’s name in Qasim Zia’s speech, said on a point of order that the previous governments were responsible for plundering the national wealth and transferring it to foreign accounts. He reminded the House that people were against democracy at that time.
Dr Wasim Akhtar of the MMA urged the government not to earn from a social sector like health. He regretted that boards of governors were formed for various state hospitals with the task to generate their own resources to meet their expenses. He demanded removal of disparity between health centres of southern Punjab and rest of the province, otherwise, he warned, separatist movements would take roots in the region.
He also demanded drug testing laboratories at each medical college besides a cut in drug prices by marketing them in generic names instead of brand names.
Begum Zeenat Khan of the PML-Q drew the attention of the government towards non-provision of potable water to citizens which was causing spread of Hepatitis-B and C and kidney diseases in Dera Ghazi Khan. She also urged the health minister to establish a burn unit and a dialysis centre in Dera where paramedics were being paid salaries through donations by the philanthropists.
Fazal Ahmad, another PML-Q MPA from southern Punjab, pointed out lack of angiography facility at the Nishtar Hospital, Multan, and suggested that special funds should be allocated at district level for the treatment of poor patients suffering from serious heart and kidney diseases.
Criticizing shifting of the Children Hospital from Multan to Lahore, Zaibun Nisa Qureshi demanded establishment of a latest maternity centre in the town.
Dr Asad Moazzam said there were at least three under-matric members in the Allied Hospital’s board of governors that was overseeing the working of graduate and post-graduate doctors. He criticized doling out lucrative administrative posts in the hospital to retired army generals at a time when doctors were being denied facilities on the plea of paucity of funds.
He suggested forming of committees comprising area philanthropists and elected representatives at each basic health unit and rural health centre level to generate funds for the provision of free medicines to poor patients. He also urged the minister to present a bill in the House for introducing sale of medicines with generic names.
Shaikh Ijaz proposed that health committees should be formed at city level to examine the performance of health institutions.
Haroon Shah said the Zakat fund should be allocated for the treatment of the poor and issuance of health cards to citizens like developed countries.
Latif Aaqib urged the House to talk about providing better facilities to the doctors community.