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Pakistan's strained public healthcare system is facing criticism after house officers at Karachi's Abbasi Shaheed Hospital intensified their protest over unpaid stipends, inadequate security and poor hospital facilities.
The protesting doctors warned that they would suspend outpatient department (OPD) services if the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) failed to address their demands without further delay, as reported by The Express Tribune. According to The Express Tribune, the protest entered its sixth consecutive day, with house officers carrying placards and banners while raising slogans in support of their demands. Despite the ongoing agitation, the doctors said they had continued providing medical services to ensure that patients were not deprived of essential healthcare, describing their demands as legitimate and long overdue. The protesting doctors alleged that they have not received their salaries for the past three months and claimed that the agreed monthly stipend of PKR 45,000 has also remained unpaid. They questioned why house officers at Abbasi Shaheed Hospital were allegedly being denied full stipends while doctors performing similar duties at other public hospitals continued to receive regular payments. The protesters viewed the disparity as discriminatory and urged authorities to immediately resolve the issue. The house officers also expressed serious concerns over security conditions within the hospital. They said that after accidents or patient deaths, large groups of attendants often enter hospital premises, placing pressure on medical staff and attempting to influence treatment decisions. According to the protesting doctors, incidents of harassment and misconduct against healthcare workers have become frequent, yet sufficient security arrangements have not been introduced to safeguard medical personnel, as cited by The Express Tribune. In addition to financial and security concerns, the protesters highlighted an acute shortage of essential medicines at the hospital, arguing that the lack of basic drugs is affecting patient treatment and placing additional strain on doctors. They warned that unless the KMC responds promptly to their demands, they would escalate the protest by shutting down OPD services and broadening their movement, as reported by The Express Tribune. (ANI)
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