PIMS to resist implementation of MTI Act

Islamabad : The employees of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Wednesday announced their decision to resist implementation of the MTI (Medical Teaching Institute) Reforms Act and the hospital’s privatisation.

Gathered under the aegis of the Grand Health Alliance, representatives of all unions and associations of PIMS converged at the hospital to declare an open war against the MTI Act. “This war will end with termination of the Act,” a press statement warns.

The participants mutually agreed to raise their voice against MTI on all fronts, and to spare no efforts till such time that their struggle is brought to fruition. “We will stand united in our stance and will, under no circumstances, allow the hospital to be privatized,” the representatives stated.

The meeting criticised all successive governments for using PIMS as a laboratory for new experiments, “but the unity of our workers has always thwarted such attempts.”

The speakers said, health and education are state responsibilities in every country of the world. “Under no circumstances will be abandon poor patients and employees,” they said, little realizing how severely patient care will be compromised in the wake of protests. If patient care is truly at the heart of such demands, then the current strategy is unlikely to yield the desired results.

The meeting was attended by all cadres of PIMS employees including consultants, doctors, paramedical staff, nurses and representatives of clerks and Christian welfare organizations, among others.