Children's Hospital DMS held in medical waste scam

[LRE]

Children's Hospital DMS held in medical waste scam



Monday, August 04, 2008
By Ali Raza

LAHORE

The Environment Department of the City District Government (CDGL), Lahore, got a deputy medical superintendent (DMS) of the Children Hospital arrested for his alleged involvement in the sale of dangerous hospital waste.

The DMS namely Khalid Shah was arrested on the information given by four employees of the Children Hospital, who had been behind the bars for the last days. They were arrested when they were transferring dangerous hospital waste from an official truck to a private vehicle, instead of taking the waste to the Children Hospital incinerator.

The Children Hospital Lahore has the facility to incinerate hospital infectious/hazardous waste collected from fifteen (15) government hospitals for which two (2) special capsulated trucks bearing number LZJ-4342 and LZJ-4345 had been allocated. The trucks collect infectious waste from Mayo Hospital, Services Hospital, Ganga Ram Hospital, Jinnah Hospital, General Hospital, P.I.C. Hospital, Lady Willington Hospital, Lady Aitcheson Hospital, Nawaz Sharif Hospital Yaki Gate, Govt Mina Munshi Hospital, Kot Khawaja Saeed Hospital and Dental Hospitals. The waste is incinerated as mandated under law in the incinerators at the Children Hospital.

Sources in the CDGL said the hospital authorities, after the arrests, wrote a letter to the DCO Lahore asked him to release the official vehicle, which was also seized. They said the DCO Lahore refused to release the vehicle on the pretext that the truck was now a case property and could not be released till the investigation was over.

The DO Environment while talking to The News said the hospital authorities had also constituted a high level inquiry committee to investigate the issue. He said the committee would submit its final recommendations to the Chief Secretary on Monday (today). The committee will also fix responsibility in its report.

Meanwhile, the DCO wrote a detailed letter to the chief secretary with a subject "Action against the officials engaged in unlawful activity of selling hospital waste." The letter stated that, in order to avoid hazards of hospital waste, the DCO held a meeting with the administration of the government and private hospitals advising them for proper management and disposal of hospital waste. He said the government and private hospitals were warned to be careful as reportedly hospital waste was being sold and recycled / re-used in connivance with the hospital staff.

The DCO revealed that a monitoring/intelligence team was constituted to monitor hospital waste and its disposal. Giving details of the August 1, 2008 incident, he said, on August 1, a raid was conducted on the information collected by the Environment Department that a truck bearing number LZJ 4342 was going to deliver/sell the hospital waste to a private contractor namely Imran.

The truck was followed from the General Hospital from where it had collected hospital waste. Instead of going to the Children Hospital, the truck went to Opp Miraj mosque, Bank Stop, 17 KM Ferozepur Road, Lahore where the truck of a private contractor was already waiting/ parked to collect the waste. It turned out that the truck carrying the hospital waste belonged to the Children Hospital. The truck was carrying 340 kg of the waste collected from different hospitals. Consequently, an FIR No. 682/08 has been lodged in Police Station Kot Lakhpat, Lahore and both the trucks have also been impounded. The DCO proposed to the chief secretary that the Punjab health secretary might be asked to inquire the matter and take the necessary action in the larger public interest.

The DO Environment said, after the preliminary interrogation, the arrested persons disclosed their names as Ghulam Rasool (truck driver) and Muqas Masih (sweeper/ helper). They further disclosed that that a large mafia was involved in the heinous activity. Both the private and govt hospital officials were involved in the activity, they said. They further informed that the waste was being sold at approximately Rs. 95/- per KG.

The arrested persons named the persons involved in the crime. They are Zaka (ex driver of the truck/gang leader) of Children Hospital, Dr. Arif (Transport Incharge Children Hospital), Dr. Khalid Shah D.M.S. (Incinerator) Children Hospital and the sanitary inspectors/Chief Sanitary inspectors of Mayo Hospital, Services Hospital, Ganga Ram Hospital, Jinnah Hospital and General Hospital.

He said Dr Khalid Shah had been arrested and more arrests were also expected in the forthcoming days, he said.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=127945