LAHORE: The Grand Health Alliance observed a strike in Lahore – against the Medical Training Institution (MTI) Act – which entered into its seventh day yesterday.
The strike troubled patients in various government-run hospitals as more than 70 neurosurgeries were postponed in Punjab Institute of Neuroscience (PINS) and General Hospital of Lahore following the strike of doctors and paramedics. The Out-Patient department and operation theatre at the Lahore General Hospital also reportedly remained closed.
Protesting doctors and other medical staff blocked Ferozpur Road, demanding the provincial government to withdraw the law.
It may be noted here that the MTI reform ordinance which was promulgated by the Punjab governor, calls for government hospitals to be run by a Board of Governors (BoGs) that would consist of members from the private sector.
BoGs will be established to run almost all teaching hospitals of Punjab’s Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department (SH&MED). It is pertinent to mention here that teaching hospitals are currently functioning under the Board of Management (BoMs) formed in accordance with the Punjab Medical and Health Institutions (PMHI) Act, 2003.
