KARACHI:Mayor Karachi Barrister Murtaza Wahab has said that Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) wants to improve its hospitals, but this cannot be achieved without implementing process of rewards and penalties, therefore, the Medical Superintendents (MSs) and other officers who do not improve performance will no longer be tolerated.
He was chairing a meeting of the KMC Medical Services Department here on Tuesday.
He said that Medical Superintendent of Sarfraz Rafiqee Shaheed Hospital, Dr. Ghulam Abbas has been suspended for being absent from duty. All hospital medical superintendents are required to submit a report within a week on how many citizens they have treated during the past year. Strict action will be taken against officers who provide incorrect figures, he said.
Mayor Karachi Barrister Murtaza Wahab said that the performance of all major hospitals under KMC is not satisfactory, therefore all medical superintendents should inform in writing how many officers and other staff members are on duty at their hospitals. Service books and personnel files of all doctors, paramedical staff, and employees should be available in hospitals, he said.
He said that all doctors working in KMC hospitals should take an oath within a week that they are not serving or practicing elsewhere, and this oath should be deposited in the Mayor’s Secretariat. All medical superintendents should improve the performance of their hospitals so that standardized medical services can be provided to patients, he said.
He said that immediate arrangements should also be made for cleanliness in hospitals. Availability of necessary medicines and medical equipment must be ensured, he said.
He said that KMC hospitals are a very cost-effective means of providing medical facilities to citizens, but this objective will only be achieved when the performance of these institutions improves and patients are satisfied with their treatment. In this regard, no delay or negligence will be tolerated, and those responsible, including superintendents and other officers, will face disciplinary action, he said.
Barrister Murtaza Wahab emphasized that all instructions given must be implemented without delay. The performance of all KMC hospitals will be reviewed and monitored continuously so that these can be improved, he said.
Municipal Commissioner, S. M. Afzal Zaidi, Senior Director Medical Services, and medical superintendents of all KMC hospitals were also present at the meeting.