News
Monday, June 14, 2010
Week-long demonstrations against govt spending on healthcare* Doctors, medical experts demand authorities address their issues, increase spending on healthcare in upcoming budget
By Umair Aziz
LAHORE: Stakeholders took out several demonstrations against low government spending on healthcare this week and pressed upon the authorities to resolve all outstanding issues related to patients and doctors.
Office bearers of the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), the Young Doctors Association (YDA), the Medical Teachers Association (MTA), along with paramedical staff joined hands to demand a greater allocation to healthcare in the budget to be tabled in the Punjab Assembly today (Monday). During their protests in front of the Punjab Assembly, they highlighted different issues of patients and doctors. They criticised the federal and provincial governments and demanded that the authorities spend at least seven percent of the GDP on health. They deplored the fact that the government, instead of increasing the healthcare budget, was continuously decreasing it year-by-year.
The medical community also pointed out the ‘mental toll’ that the health sector is facing due to low salaries being offered to doctors working out of their homes. Many senior doctors maintained that hundreds of teaching posts were already lying vacant in different teaching hospitals across Punjab, while the Saudi government had hired more than a thousand doctors on higher pays. Hundreds of these doctors have already been granted leave by the Health Department, which has “turned a blind eye” to the situation at home, they added.
Talking to Daily Times, Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) Joint Secretary Dr Shahid Malik said the shortage of doctors had been there “for years now”. He said planning and professionalism means meeting the demand and supply of teachers and the Health Department was lagging behind in both. He said medical education had never been a priority of the government, which has been promoting ad-hocism for many years. “They are pointing out problems, but not coming up with solutions, which can only come with a vision…the authorities concerned lack vision and hence come up with their policies,” Shahid said.
YDA President Rana Sohail said the Punjab government had not taken the medical community onboard in the making of the upcoming budget. He demanded a special pay package for doctors, saying that the pay of a house officer should be Rs 35,000, of a medical officer Rs 80,000 and of a senior registrar Rs 150,000.
The paramedical staff also demanded that their salaries be increased and a regular service structure be announced for them immediately.
PMA president Dr Yasmin Rashid said the government had badly failed to provide healthcare facilities to the people, adding that doctors were the most “overworked and underpaid” professionals. She said the only way to resolve all issues of the patients and doctors was to increase the healthcare budget.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk