One-patient, one-attendant policy adopted for hospitals

Jinnah Hospital emergency resumes services after

A notification has been issued by Punjab Health Department to adopt one-patient, one-attendant policy in all the teaching hospitals.

It was decided in a meeting chaired by the secretary of specialised care and medical education department Najam Ahmad Shah in which Adviser to Chief Minister on Health Khwaja Salman Rafique also participated. The meeting was attended by Additional Inspector General (AIG) of Police operations, Vice Chancellor Fatimah Jinnah Medical University Prof Fakhar Imam, Medical Director Children Hospital Prof Ahsan Waheed, Medical Superintendent (MS) Jinnah Hospital Dr Shafqat, MS of Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) Dr Sohail Saqlain and other administrative heads of major government hospitals. The secretary health said that the large number of attendants with one patient cause high security risks and also increase the workload of doctors. The secretary health directed the participants to ensure that all the CCTV cameras in the hospitals are working properly.

A story was carried out Pakistan Today the other day, demanding practical steps to improve the security situation in the hospitals. It has been witnessed in the government hospitals that a single patient is accompanied by many attendants.

In this scenario, a terrorist or a criminal may enter the hospital in the guise of an attendant.

It was emphasised in Pakistan Today’s report to ensure that there would be one attendant with one patient to improve the security situation of the hospitals that is also an old demand of the doctors’ community.

Meanwhile, the surgical emergency of Jinnah Hospital Lahore Friday resumed its services after Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Ameen Wains held successful negotiations with doctors working there.

He assured them that the strength of police officials deputed in the hospital would be increased from 7 to 18.

18 constables of Model Town division would be deputed at the police post of Jinnah Hospital, according to a document available with Pakistan Today.

Dr Adnan Gondal of Young Doctors Association (YDA) from Jinnah Hospital told this scribe that the hospital administration has assured the doctors that security guards would be hired soon to overcome the security lapses. He said the CCPO assured doctors that the hospital will be declared as zero-tolerance zone from the security perspective and doctors have agreed to perform their duties after getting concrete assurance from him.

It is pertinent to mention here that fear had gripped the doctors working at emergencies as an assailant opened the firing in the surgical emergency three days back.