The Young Doctors Association (YDA) strike across Punjab against the government’s alleged indifference towards their demand of service structure on Thursday entered its fourth consecutive day.
The YDA had shut down the outpatient departments (OPDs) of the public hospitals across the province in protest that caused inconvenience to the patients and their attendants. Many patients, requiring outdoor treatment, did not visit hospitals in anticipation of the unavailability of healthcare services. The patients received a double blow as hundreds of operations were postponed in hospitals partly due to the young doctors’ strike as well as the load shedding.
Thousands of patients were left unattended in the indoor wards, belying the YDA’s claims that the young doctors will not hamper treatment in the emergency wards, indoor wards and ICUs/CCUs.
The closure of OPDs increased the number of patients visiting the emergency wards. The patients strongly criticised the doctors for denying them medical treatment as they could not afford expensive treatment at private hospitals.
They also said the Punjab government has shown indifference about resolving the matter and leaving the patients at the mercy of young doctors who had resorted to their usual tactic of using patients as a shield to influence the government into accepting their demands.
The teaching hospital administrations claimed that they had ensured the provision of healthcare services in the emergency and indoor wards.
Meanwhile, the YDA members vowed to continue their strike until the fulfillment of their demand of a revised service structure in the province. They also condemned the provincial government for playing in the hands of the bureaucracy, backing off from its promises and forcing the doctors to go on strike.
