SIALKOT (ENN) One more year of promises has passed, but the Sialkot still remains unable to get the direly needed Burn Unit despite having the two teaching hospitals, amazingly. The dream of having an international standard burn unit at Sialkot still remains to be true. This situation was revealing the interest of the local political big guns and health department officials a swell.
Sialkot has two DHQ/Teaching hospitals and both of these hospitals namely Govt. Allama Iqbal Memorial DHQ/Teaching Hospital Sialkot and Govt. Sardar Begum Memorial DHQ/Teaching Hospital Sialkot had been lacking any “Burn Unit” since the establishment of these hospitals several decades ago.
Several decades have passed but no one (including the local elected political representatives) had ever bothered to establish any burn unit in Sialkot for providing the better and medical treatment to the local burnt people at local level, amazingly.
This situation is leaving very big question marks on the performance of the good governance policy of the Punjab CM as well, in this regard.
Punjab government had been spending billions of rupees on the establishment of the grand building of Kh. Muhammad Safdar Medical College at Sialkot, but it remained unable to allocate even a single penny for establishing any bun unit in any of he said both DHQ/teaching hospitals of Sialkot, which had been working under the direct supervision of Kh. Muhammad Safdar Medical College Sialkot.
According to the details, there is no burn unit at any government hospital in Sialkot district for 4.4 million population of Sialkot district, due to which the burnt patients (acid throwing victims) had to suffer from great ordeal in getting medical treatment at Lahore, Islamabad and other main cities after travelling long due to which several burnt patients succumbed to their severe burn wounds before getting medical treatment or before reaching to long distanced Lahore, Islamabad or other cities.
In 2002 (sixteen years ago), the then District Nazim of Sialkot Mian Naeem Javaid had approved a project to establish a well-equipped burn unit at Govt. Allama Iqbal Memorial DHQ Hospital Sialkot, but it could not be established due to the non availability of the needed funds.
Since then, no one had ever felt the need of establishing burn unit at Sialkot despite knowing the fact that early establishment of a burn unit was the dire need of the people and demand of the day.
Local social, religious, health and political circles have expressed grave concern over this nasty situation, saying that the Provincial Health Secretary Punjab and Director General Health Punjab had never visited these hospitals to known the problems of the local patients being faced in the above-mentioned hospitals, amazingly.
They said that this situation is leaving the big question marks on Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif’s good governance policy as well.
Local senior lawyers Aliya Hina, Ghazala Adnan Bhatti, Lala Mubashar Butt, Mian Ghulam Farooq, Saleem Ahmed, Mian Ghulam Farooq, Syed Habibul Hassan and Adnan Dar and local social, political, business, medical and religious circles have expressed grave concern over this nasty situation.
They have urged the Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Commissioner Gujranwala Division Capt (Rtd) Muhammad Asif, Sialkot Deputy Commissioner Dr. Farrukh Naveed , CEO of Sialkot District Health Authority Dr. Latif Ahmed Sahi and Principal Kh. Muhammad Safdar Medical College Sialkot Prof. Dr. Zafar Ali Chaudhary to look into the matter and ensure the early establishment of a burn unit at Sialkot in the larger interest of the local people, in this regard.
When contacted, Principal Kh. Muhammad Safdar Medical College Sialkot Dr. Zafar Ali Chaudhary said that the situation was in his notice and efforts were underway to establish any burn unit in Sialkot.
