CHITRAL: The district headquarters hospital in Booni area of Upper Chitral has been functioning without any woman doctor for the last one year, as many doctors posted here got their posting orders cancelled.

The last woman doctor, who served in the hospital, died last year. She belonged to the Yarkhoon Valley.

Sources in the health department told Dawn that out of the 58 sanctioned posts of medical officers for government hospitals in Upper Chitral, including that of the Category-D hospital in Booni, only eight were filled.

District health officer Dr Farman confirmed the doctors’ vacancies and said three months ago, a woman doctor from a Peshawar hospital was posted to the DHQ hospital but she got her posting orders cancelled even before joining the duty.

He said he had informed authorities about the issue many times.

“As there are no women doctors, bodies of the women, who die a natural death, are dispatched to the Lower Chitral DHQ hospital. All gynaecology cases are also referred there,” he said.

Deputy Speaker of the KP Assembly Suraya Bibi, who represented Upper Chitral in the house, didn’t respond to Dawn’s repeated phone calls.

Published in Dawn, March 14th, 2025