Punjab government started arresting young doctors, as a police team raided general body meeting of Young Doctors Association at Services Hospital on late Sunday night. A contingent of police headed by senior officials entered the hospital and arrested leaders of the YDA, who had threatened to cordon off Chief Minister House on July 5 if their demands were not met.
Earlier, Punjab government had given deadline of 3.00pm Sunday to the YDA to end its illegal strike, otherwise their services would be terminated and they would be blacklisted.
Health department sources told Business Recorder that the department would start issuing show cause notices to the young doctors who did not report for duty on Monday. They further said that the government has also decided to issue appointment letters to more than one thousand fresh graduates who have already recommended by the Punjab Public Service Commission to fill the vacant posts in the hospital. A Health department spokesman said that walk-in interviews would be held from Monday for appointment of Medical Officers on adhoc basis in the government teaching hospitals.
They said that the candidates holding MBBS degree, PMDC registration, one year's regular house job between the age of 22 and 40 should contact the Medical Superintendent of the nearest teaching hospital during working hours for appointment. Meanwhile, Punjab government spokesman Senator Pervaiz Rashid warned Young Doctors Association that the government would not hold talks with it on gunpoint and the culture of threats will not be tolerated at any cost.
He said that the salaries and incentives of young doctors in Punjab are higher than other provinces. While commenting upon the ongoing strike of young doctors in government hospitals, he said that doctors want to fight their war by holding the patients hostage. However, the government will not hold talks with the doctors till calling off strike by them.
Rashid said that the culprit of kidnapping for ransom also takes care of the health of the abductee but these doctors are callous than the abductors. He said that the provincial government has completed all arrangements and they would not let the routines of the hospitals affected in any case. He said that services of doctors of Pak Army have been hired for providing treatment to the patients and new doctors are also being recruited. He reiterated that emergencies, OPDs and hospitals would be kept open so that treatment could be provided to Earlier, leaders of the Young Doctors Association held detailed negotiations with senior doctors throughout the day but failed to reach an agreement to end the strike for the 14th consecutive day.
The YDA are demanding direct grade 18 after job commissioning. They are also demanding health professional allowance to be equal with basic salary. They are also demanding that the salary of a postgraduate be the same as that of a medical officer. The YDA have been on strike for past 14 days in Punjab. Meanwhile the provincial government has issued employment letters of 454 doctors and advised them to resume their duties from Monday. The Army has provided 150 doctors from its medical corp to provide medical care at the outdoor wards of various hospitals in the province. According to MS Civil Hospital Captain Zafar 16 army doctors would take charge of the outdoor ward at the hospital on Monday. Thousands of patients and their attendants, who had come to Lahore for treatment at the government's hospitals, condemned attitude the Young doctors demanded of the government to take strict action against them.
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