RAWALPINDI, SEP 21 (APP/DNA): The District Health Authority (DHA) Rawalpindi has taken stringent action against employees neglecting their duties in the ongoing anti-dengue campaign, dismissing 61 permanent staff members and suspending several others.
District Health Officer (DHO) HR, Dr. Hasnain Shah confirmed the APP that concerns were raised about the performance of around 200 employees, with inquiries completed for 90 of them.
“These employees were found negligent in critical tasks such as door-to-door surveillance, implementing anti-dengue measures and raising public awareness”, he said.
The DHA had deployed nearly 1,000 personnel for the campaign, with a total health force of approximately 3,000, including contingent staff and permanent employees. However, reports of a considerable number of employees failing to render full time or being absent from duty were received.
“Observations from senior officers, coupled with data from the performance showing Dengue Dashboard established with the support of the Punjab Information Technology Board, revealed that certain employees were not fulfilling their responsibilities”, Dr. Hasnain added.
The DHO said that these employees were repeatedly warned, but due to their persistent lack of improvement, strict measures, including terminations and suspensions, were ordered.
A three-member inquiry committee, led by Dr. Adeem, a senior officer of the health authority, has been constituted to investigate these lapses. The committee is conducting daily inquiries, and the action against more employees is expected in the coming days.
To a question, the DHO noted that the negligence of some employees temporarily affected the campaign’s performance, but the dedication of other hardworking staff members, who shouldered the additional burden, has kept the campaign on track.
The DHO emphasized that dengue is a dangerous epidemic, and a zero-tolerance policy is being adopted against those undermining the health authority’s efforts.
“Deputy Commissioner is personally overseeing the matter. Strict actions, including dismissals and suspensions, will continue against employees found negligent in their duties”, he said.
According to the data released by the authority, Rawalpindi has reported over 500 dengue cases so far this year, 60 new cases have emerged in the past three days with a daily average exceeding 20 cases. Currently, 50 patients are under treatment in various hospitals.
The DHO praised the efforts of employees diligently performing their duties, saying that their hard work is commendable. However, he reiterated that no tolerance will be shown toward those found negligent. He reaffirmed the authority’s commitment to taking every possible measure to ensure the success of the anti-dengue campaign and protect the public from this epidemic.
“Further actions against more negligent employees are initiated as the inquiry committee continues its investigations, a step deemed essential for the campaign’s success”, he added.
Dr. Waqar Ahmad, DHA Spox said that the ongoing inquiry would not affect the camping as DHA was consistently pursuing the dengue SOPs.
“In response to the developing situation, the DHA has further intensified its campaign to curb the spread of dengue”, Dr. Waqar said.
APP learned that a group of dismissed employees was in effort to agitate the issue by announcing strike against the action. They have also called the employees to quit the campaign as a protest by not attending the campaign. However, the health department confirmed that workers deployed for the dengue campaign were fully engaged in their assigned responsibilities.
