LAHORE: The Young Doctors Association (YDA) Punjab and caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi have locked horns over closure of the outpatient departments (OPDs) of the major teaching hospitals of Lahore by the former for the last two weeks, amid reports of young medics resorting to violence against attendants of poor patients demanding treatment.

The YDA has been protesting for the arrest of killers of a doctor who was shot dead by unidentified armed men in Gujrat some weeks back.

The Punjab chief minister had on Monday termed the two-week long protest on the YDA call a cruel decision, saying no change can be brought in the healthcare system unless the young medics start earning “halal” money. The YDA, taking exception to the CM’s remark, declared it derogatory.

Meanwhile, caretaker Health Minister Prof Javed Akram, who has reportedly been patronising most of the agitations by the YDA so far, also blamed the medics for the recent chaos in the state-run hospitals of the province.

CM, health minister declare agitation unjustified

Addressing a conference attended by the vice-chancellors and principals of the public sector medical universities and other institutes, he lashed out at the YDA, saying the young medics have been protesting just for ‘money’.

“Even If their [young doctors’] salaries are increased two times, the healthcare delivery at the state-run hospitals will remain the same,” said Prof Akram.

He also lashed out at the academic councils and the faculty members of the medical universities and colleges, alleging that they have been patronising and backing the YDA agitations in Punjab to settle “personal scores” with the successive governments.

These remarks of the caretaker health minister further enraged the YDA office-bearers when footage of the minister’s speech went viral on social media.

Reacting to the video clip, the YDA demanded immediate resignation of the caretaker health minister, besides an apology by the chief minister, for passing the remarks against the young medics.

Amid this confrontation, the patients have become the ultimate losers as thousands of them have been denied treatment at the state-run hospitals of Lahore and are forced to go either to the costly private sector facilities or the quacks, as a majority of them can’t afford treatment expenses due to the already high inflation in the country.

On Tuesday, a group of young doctors gathered outside the health department office on the Lawrence Road, raised slogans against the chief minister and the caretaker health minister, and threatened to extend the scope of agitation if their demands were not accepted.

On the other hand, the young doctors not only locked the OPDs, but also reportedly thrashed the attendants of some the patients for insisting on provision of treatment to their ailing loved ones.

At the Jinnah Hospital, a group of young doctors allegedly thrashed attendants of an elderly patient who was brought with breathing issues at the OPD.

The patient, Yaqoob, of Walton Road, was brought by his son to the hospital’s OPD with chest pain, but the young doctors refused to attend him and also used abusive language against the attendant when he argued that they (young doctors) were denying treatment to his father despite getting salaries from the taxes of the people.

According to eyewitnesses, the doctors dragged the attendant to a room where they allegedly subjected him to torture. The doctors also threatened to hand the attendant over to the police on false allegation of snatching mobile phone from a lady doctor.

Another incident was reported at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital where a group of young medics allegedly kicked some attendants for not leaving the OPD which had been closed due to YDA agitation.As per sources, at the Services Hospital, a group of charged YDA men take rounds of the OPD in the morning and at noon daily to ensure that the healthcare services are suspended and the strike is successful.

According to the eyewitnesses, some YDA men carrying clubs warned the hospital’s administrative officers that they would resort to ‘extreme options’, including attack on the staff if the hospital management dared to interfere in the agitation.

As per estimates, the major government-run teaching hospitals of Lahore attend 5,000 to 7,000 patients each daily at their OPDs. Most of these patients are poor and can’t afford treatment at private clinics and hospitals.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2023