RAWALPINDI - Pouring of patients into the Holy Family Hospital (HFH) from Rawalpindi and its outskirts is rising with every day but the availability of senior doctors in the hospital seems to have been fading, thus exposing the lose grip of the authorities concerned over the hospital affairs.

Because of absence of senior doctors from their duties, the poor patients have been suffering a lot, neither RMC big wigs nor Provincial Health Department are taking notice of this serious issue, something seeking strong attention of Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
A visit, paid by this scribe to various departments of the hospital on Thursday, found that the corridors of the hospital were packed with patients, some of them are in very serious condition, but most of the senior doctors were not present on their seats to attend the patients.
Scores of patients and their attendants pointed finger at senior doctors/Associate Professors in the hospital, who they said are always absent from their duties even on the proposed days set by the RMC administration for examining the patients.
With the absence of the senior doctors, the patients are left with no choice but to visit junior doctors who despite doing their best cannot properly diagnose complicated diseases. Consequently, the patients have to face health hazards after being examined by junior doctors.
The alleged inefficiency and negligence of the junior doctors can be judged from the fact that a patient Sakina Bibi hailing from Rawalpindi was brought to the hospital’s Orthopaedic OPD with severe pain in her backbone but she had to visit another hospital without getting proper medical treatment from HFH because of the alleged absence of Orthopedic OPD Surgeon and Assistant Professor Dr Riaz Ahmed.
Imran Ali, son of the ailing lady, told this scribe that he had came to the hospital to show his mother to Dr Riaz Ahmed but he was not available in his room despite his day ‘Thursday’ set by RMC for examining the patients.
He said that he showed her mother to junior doctors who did not put ears to her problem and only suggested pain killers for two weeks. “But my mother’s condition was not stable and this forced me to bring her to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHD) for proper medical treatment,” Imran said.
In DHQ, Neuro Surgeon examined the patient thoroughly and asked her to conduct Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) immediately to find out the real cause of the pain. The doctor also suggested precautionary measures to the patient she had to follow, Imran said adding that the Neurosurgeon also discarded the slip of medicines suggested by the junior doctors of HFH.
A well-placed source in the hospital revealed to TheNation that absence of the senior doctors/Associate Professors at HFH has become an order of the day. “All the senior doctors run private clinics and hospitals while violating the ban imposed on government servants not to run private hospitals during duty hours,” the source added.
The source said that some of the senior staff leaves the hospital and go to run their private businesses yet they get full salaries at the end of month. When contacted, RMC Principal and AHs Chief Dr Musaddiq Khan, however, expressed his wonder over the issue of the absence of senior doctors from their duty hours. He said that he would probe the matter in detail and take action against those violating duty rules. “I will look into the matter. The senior doctors should sit in their rooms as per schedule to see the patients,” he added.