Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz has suspended the Medical Superintendent (MS) of Jinnah Hospital, Lahore following complaints from patients during a surprise visit on Monday.
During the surprise visit, CM found numerous patients and their families complaining the Maryam Nawaz regarding unavailability of medicines and diagnostic tests in the Jinnah Hospital.
In a similar fashion earlier this month, Maryam Nawaz fired the MS of Mayo Hospital in a surprise visit. During her visit to Mayo Hospital on March 6, patients complained about the unavailability of medicines, poor hygiene in wards and lack of other medical facilities. Many patients also complained about the lack of basic medical supplies such as syringes and lancets.
Expressing her anger over the hospital’s administration in the viral video, the Chief Minister questioned the MS’s competence, saying: “You don’t even know what’s happening with the patients. Who appointed you here? Be grateful I’m not having you arrested!”
The incident raised eyebrows in the medical community and social media with many people criticising the CM Punjab for her alleged “publicity stunt.”
The CM’s remarks against the MS, particularly, drew strong criticism for ‘publicly humuliating’ a senior medical officer.
However, Dawn News later reported that the Mayo Hospital MS Prof Dr Faisal Masood had already tendered his resignation on February 12 due to Rs3.5bn pending liabilities of Mayo Hospital.
The medical community opined that the provincial health minister and secretary were responsible for the incompetent administration.
However, Maryam Nawaz has remained undeterred as she fired another public hospital’s MS over patients’ complaints. “Providing citizens with quality and timely healthcare is the government’s top priority,” she stated during the surprise visit to Jinnah Hospital.
