The Young Doctors Association (YDA) continued boycott of public sector hospitals in Punjab as well as in the federal capital, as the issue of pay raise and regularisation of contract doctors remained unresolved. The YDA Punjab had launched a movement 35 days ago, demanding pay raise, regularisation of contract doctors and regular service structure.
The movement was later joined by the YDA federal capital which totally paralysed the healthcare system in the public sector hospitals and even reportedly led to deaths of several patients and put lives of scores of others at grave risk, sources in one of the public sector hospitals of Islamabad revealed.
The doctors' strike in Islamabad has badly affected the routine work in the hospitals besides leading to cancellation of over 700 surgical procedures. The government would have no other option except to terminate all doctors creating trouble and induct new professional ones if the strike is further prolonged, official sources said. Meanwhile, YDA Islamabad stuck to their demands on Monday and held a protest demonstration. The outpatient departments and operation theatres in the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences and Polyclinic Hospital remained closed. The demonstration was led by Dr Mohammad Ajmal President Polyclinic hospital YDA wing. They reiterated their commitment to continue strike until their demands were not met.
Ajmal said that the government had raised salaries of bureaucrats across the board by 50 percent, while doctors were denied this raise which was unacceptable. "If the government is short of funds, what is the purpose of allocating billions of rupees for CM package, the Big City Programme, and the Danish Schools project," he said. He said that the young doctors would go on a hunger strike if their demands were not met in 48 hours.
Ajmal claimed that no patient was being sent back from emergency. "All patients are properly treated and reports about their deaths are baseless," he added. To a question, he said that YDA includes 15,000 doctors and doctors from other provinces are also joining this platform. It is impossible for the government to terminate any doctor as it would result in total collapse of the healthcare system in the county.
According to reports, the Punjab government has fired 60 doctors while warning notices to another 84 doctors have been issued on charges of their involvement in anti-state activities. Business Recorder repeatedly tried to contact Federal Secretary Health and Cabinet Division Nargis Sethi to get her comments, but she was not available for comments.