Nishtar Hospital MS ousted amid 'complaints'

LAHORE: The Punjab government on Monday removed Nishtar Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Rao Amjad Ali Khan from his post and directed him to report immediately to the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department.

According to an official notification, Nishtar Hospital Principal Medical Officer Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan has been given the additional charge of the MS office for the next three months or until a regular appointment is made. The notification, however, did not state any reason for Dr Rao’s removal.

According to health department sources, the decision followed complaints related to the hospital’s administrative affairs. The concerns, they said, included alleged irregularities in the procurement of medicines, janitorial service contracts and shortcomings in service delivery to patients visiting the facility.

The same sources said repeated complaints had been conveyed to the relevant authorities about weaknesses in the hospital’s management. They also alleged that the outgoing MS would often reach his office late.

According to the sources, the matter later came under scrutiny by senior officials in the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department as well as the chief minister’s office, after which the decision was taken to remove Dr Rao from the post.

A spokesperson for the department said he was unaware of the reason behind the removal and also could not say whether any formal inquiry had been launched against Dr Rao.

Dr Rao could not be contacted for comment despite repeated attempts.