35 doctors issued notices, YDA holding firm

The Punjab government, on Tuesday, issued notices to 35 out of 120 Young Doctors’ Association (YDA) office bearers in teaching hospitals across the province. Many doctors have refused to comply with the government’s orders, The Express Tribune has learnt.

Several professors told The Express Tribune they had refused to comply with the government’s orders to stop their students from striking. Instead, they said they had told their principals in Tuesday’s academic council meetings to advise the government to ‘stop using their shoulder to shoot at the doctors’.

Principals of Punjab Medical College, Faisalabad, Shaikh Zayed Medical College, Rahim Yar Khan and Services Institute of Medical Sciences, Lahore have refused to comply with the orders to serve notices or warning letters to the doctors.

The Express Tribune learnt from the concerned medical superintendents (MS) and principals that Quaid-i-Azam Medical College, Bahawalpur has issued 11 notices to Post Graduate Resident Doctors (PGRs) and PGR Medical Officers (MOs), Fatima Jinnah Medical College/Ganga Ram Hospital has issued three notices to PGRs, Jinnah Hospital/Allama Iqbal Medical College five, Lahore General Hospital four and Mayo Hospital/King Edward Medical University six. The notice warns the PGRs and PGRMOs to mend their ways by March 20 otherwise their post graduate training would be terminated and concerned principals would write to the head of the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan to revoke their registration. The notice charges the recipients with misconduct. The law requires PGRs and PGRMOs to submit an affidavit of good conduct at the time of enrolment.

Sources in the Health Department said all teaching hospitals on Tuesday held meetings of academic councils in which several professors refused to comply with the government’s order to issue show cause notices. They said that the Health Department had also directed supervisors to calm down their students but they had refused to do so. Instead, they had warned the government not to bother them otherwise they would also join the protest.

Punjab Medical College principal/ Allied Hospital Professor Riaz Hussain Dhabb said that negotiations between doctors and professors continued and there would be a resolution soon. Mayo Hospital MS Dr Zahid Pervaiz confirmed that several professors had opposed the government’s orders.

YDA president Dr Hamid Butt who works at Services Hospital as MO said that on Wednesday the YDA will only boycott Out Patient Departments (OPDs) and treat patients in tents set up on roadsides. He said on Thursday they would close all OPDs, indoor units, wards and operation theatres. He said that YDA would make the government accept their demands.

Health Secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad said the YDA demand for salary raises was unrealistic. He said the doctors should wait for next year’s budget. He said that the government did not want to stop the doctors from exercise of their democratic rights but warned that work at hospitals might suffer and thousands of patients admitted there could be left stranded.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 16^th, 2011.

YDA strike to continue for indefinite period

Doctors are well paid globally, but not in Pakistan, stated office-bearers of Young Doctors Association here on Sunday. Talking to APP, YDA office bearer, Dr Usman Ayub, Dr Usman Dar, Dr Nasir Abbas and Dr Abubakar Gondal said that their strike could continue for an indefinite period if a notification of a special salary package was not issued. They stressed that the demands for salary raise of young doctors were justified.

Highlighting the “struggle” of a doctor as a student they said that the medical graduation requires six years, including study years at medical colleges. “Then the doctor takes a house job for one year. The total time consumed is around seven years. By this time doctors are almost 26 years old”.“After the successful completion of a house job, the doctor is given a job as medical officer with a pay of Rs 25,000. In this meagre amount how can he support a family ?”, they asserted.They said a banker gets Rs 60,000 with an education of 14 years, a judge gets Rs 150,000 with 17 years of education and a peon of the Supreme Court receives Rs 50,000 with 12 years of education. A policeman earns Rs 30,000 with 12 years of education, they highlighted.They further said that postgraduation degree requires another five years and the doctor-trainee has to work for 36 hours after a rest of 12 hours. During the entire postgraduation training period a person is under huge pressure to study lest he fails to qualify for the degree, they stressed.

They concludingly asserted that the YDA’s demand for Rs 70,000 salary for medical officers and postgraduate trainee, and Rs 40,000 for house officers was justified .—APP

`Miscreants` will be terminated Govt to strike at YDA with iron fist

The Punjab government has finally decided to terminate the services of young doctors for their ‘unwanted and ugly activities’ in the name of agitation and blacklist them for post-graduation training in any local or foreign medical institution, Dawn has learnt.

Use of force against doctors, crackdown, criminal proceedings, imposition of section 144 at public health facilities and arrests under 16 MPO are the options in hand after March 21, a deadline given to Young Doctors Association’s Punjab leaders and other protesting doctors to “mend their ways or face wrath of the government”.

Also, the government has decided to get the hostels of medical colleges and hospitals vacated from YDA office bearers by force and ban their entry to any public institution of the province permanently.

An insider said this was what appeared to be ultimate stand of the Punjab government at a meeting with principals and medical superintendents of all teaching and district hospitals of the province at the Punjab Civil Secretariat on Monday.

Health Secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad, CPSP vice-president Prof Dr Khalid Masood Gondal and senior officials of the health department attended the meeting with Health Parliamentary Secretary Dr Saeed Elahi in the chair.

The insider said Elahi read out government’s final decision to the meeting and conveyed the message to deal with the doctors challenging government’s writ with an iron hand.

Principals and medical superintendents of the health facilities were given lists of ‘miscreants’ including YDA Punjab office bearers and those who denied healthcare services and access to patients to public hospitals.

The insider said the list was compiled on the basis of the information provided by law enforcement agencies, health department and administrations of the health institutions. Ten to 15 doctors from each public health institution or hospital were on the list for their “involvement in illegal and unethical activities” during what the health department said so-called YDA movement.

The health department directed the heads of medical institutions to hold academic council meetings of their institutions on Tuesday (today), prepare cases of the listed doctors and refer these to the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) and Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) for de-registration of their post-graduation training and blacklisting them.

After de-registration, the ‘miscreants’ would have to move the court or leave the medial profession forever. The said cases would also be sent at the same time to the Punjab health department for termination of these doctors’ services and initiation of other proceedings against them according to the ‘scale’ of their offences.

According to the insider, the health department directed the principals of all medical colleges to write letters to the parents of listed ‘miscreants’ and YDA office bearers on Tuesday (today) to intimate them about their “illegal activities” and the action planned by the Punjab government against them.

Show-cause notices would be issued the same day (today) to protesting doctors identified in the lists to inform them about the charges ‘framed’ against them like halting critical care to patients in emergencies and locking operation theatres during two-week long strike announced by YDA. Action would be taken against them after March 21.

Prof Gondal assured the meeting on behalf of the CPSP that stern action would be taken against the ‘miscreants’ and no one of them would be given post-graduation training in any medical institution of the country.

The meeting was informed about two senior doctors of Lahore General Hospital and a teacher of KEMU who provided financial assistance to YDA and provoked it against the Punjab government.

Some principals informed the meeting that most YDA leaders, who did MBBS from Central Asian States or local private medical colleges, had no respect for teachers and supervisors. For example, the meeting was told, YDA Punjab president Dr Hamid Butt did MBBS from a Central Asian State. He recently phoned principal of the Shaikh Zayed Medical College, Rahim Yar Khan, abused him for allegedly creating hurdles in young doctors’ protest movement and threatened him with consequences.

Doctors’ protest enters 14th day

Young doctors' protest across the province including twin cities Islamabad-Rawalpindi, continued on 14-day.

Young doctors of government hospitals have been protesting for increase in their salaries. Due to the strike, they are checking patients on roads.

The doctors started their strike for the increase of their salaries on March 1. They had closed outdoor and indoor facilities for patients and protested in streets but now only the outdoor units in hospitals are closed.

The protesting doctors said that their salaries were very low and should be increased. They said that keeping in view the difficulties being faced by the patients; outdoor patients were being treated on roads.

According to Young Doctors Association (YDA), the doctors would not attend patients in hospitals, until the acceptance of their demands.

Govt to take strict action against protesting doctors

The Punjab government has decided to take strict action against the young doctors who are on strike for the last 13 days demanding raise in salaries and improvement of health infrastructure, sources told Daily Times on Sunday.

Sources on the condition of anonymity said that the Punjab government had ordered the authorities to prepare a list of the patients who died or their condition worsened due to medical negligence and unavailability of the proper medical care due to the strike of the doctors all over the Punjab.

When asked what type of action could be taken against the protesting doctors, the sources said so far the list of the patients had been sought and it may be the first step of the government to use this list against the doctors to isolate them and their salaries could also be deducted and as a last step if both the parties remained unable to reach on any reconciliation then cases could be filed against the doctors along with their removal from jobs. They said the government could use the relatives of the patients to move against doctors as due to their negligence the patient died or their condition worsened.

The doctors all over the Punjab are protesting against the Punjab government for its failure to address their problems and in Rawalpindi they are on strike for the last 13 days. This situation has added to the miseries of the patients, while on the other hand the para-medical staff of Rawalpindi division has already threatened the government of strike as the notification of their service structure that was approved by the Punjab chief minister one year ago could not be issued despite many efforts.

The doctors have set up camps outside the hospitals to provide medical facilities to the patients, but many patients are unable to get proper treatment due to non-functionality of the Out Door Patient’s Department (OPD) of the government hospitals in the city, which not only cater to the needs of the locals but people from the far flung areas including AJK, Chakwal, Murree and other areas also visit these hospitals for treatment.

Punjab Young Doctors Association (YDA) Chairman Dr Muhammad Haroon, YDA Rawalpindi Chapter president Dr Umer Saeed and joint secretary Dr Junaind Abbassi addressing a joint press conference at Rawalpindi Press Club a few days ago had threatened that over 15,000 young doctors would resign from their services if the Punjab government did not accept their demands.

The young doctors are demanding that the government increase their salaries, raise the health budget to ensure better health facilities to the masses, 100 percent rise in paid seats of all trainee doctors including medical officers, postgraduate and house officers. They are also demanding an end to unpaid labour and review of service structure of doctors.

The provincial government has also launched a media campaign highlighting the steps taken by the government for the doctors and terming their strike baseless. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has also announced to support the strike of doctors and termed it a struggle for their rights. Representatives of other political parties are also visiting the camps of protesting doctors to express solidarity with them.

The Punjab government had set up a committee to resolve the issue but no concrete result emerged and now the government has decided to take strict action against the protesting doctors

YDA fears action against doctors, warns government of consequences

The Young Doctors Association (YDA), Punjab, warned the provincial government of the consequences announcing that in case of use of force even against a single doctor, all services including emergency, intensive care units, coronary care units, labour rooms and operation theatres in hospitals across the province would be withdrawn.

After getting information from its sources in intelligence services about the government action against doctors on Monday (today), the General Council of the YDA held a tele-meeting on Saturday night. In the meeting, all city presidents of the association in the province decided that in case of use of force by the government to check doctors’ movement, the doctors would withdraw all their services from all public sector hospitals of the province.

On the call of the Punjab YDA, young doctors withdrew their services from outpatient departments of all public sector hospitals on March 1 after getting no response from the provincial government on the subject of increase in their salaries, pay protection and increase in health budget. On Sunday, the doctors’ strike in OPDs entered 13th day, however, the young doctors have been running free medical camps outside hospitals to accommodate poor patients. The YDA also announced that from Monday to Wednesday, strike in OPDs would continue, however, free medical camps would continue to serve the public.

“On March 17, all the young doctors of Punjab including medical officers, house officers and postgraduate trainees would stage a sit-in protest on roads in front of hospitals while complete strike would be observed in all departments of the hospitals,” said YDA Chairman Dr Muhammad Haroon while talking to ‘The News’.

President YDA Rawalpindi Chapter Dr Umar Saeed told ‘The News’ Sunday morning that the YDA received information through its sources in intelligence agencies that the provincial government is planning to use force against office-bearers of the YDA on Monday. “We would not tolerate use of force even against a single doctor.” Dr Umar added that the young doctors would continue holding up free medical camps till Wednesday adding “Because young doctors are not insensitive like the Punjab government and we would not like to let patients suffer in our struggle for our rights.”

Doctors rap govt for ad campaign

The Young Doctors Association (YDA) on Friday lashed out at the Punjab government`s ads in newspapers, accusing it of starting a campaign against them for demanding increase in salaries and the budget for government run hospitals.

Dr Umer Saeed, YDA Rawalpindi president, told Dawn that the provincial government was spending huge money on advertisements but not providing funds for improving facilities in public hospitals.

“CT Scan in Benazir Bhutto Hospital is not working for the last three months. Similarly MRI machine in Holy Family Hospital has not been used for the last two-and-a-half years but the money is being spent on advertisement against doctors,” he said.

“If the Punjab government is sincere in solving the problems of patients, it should provide maximum facilities in government run hospitals,” he said, adding that the machinery was out of order and patients are asked to get medical tests from private clinics. Contrary to its claims, he said the provincial government had banned using funds for the government hospitals.

Dr Saeed said the doctors were not demanding undue favour from the government.

He said Saturday will be the last day for the medical camps set up outside the hospitals, adding that the protesting doctors would observe complete strike and close down the OPDs from Monday.

Maintaining that the doctors did not want to create problems for patients, he said they have been left with no choice but to go on strike to press the government to meet their demands.

The young doctors` strike entered the 11th consecutive day on Friday. The patients kept shuttling between the OPDs and medical camps for treatment at the government run hospitals in the city.