Karachi: Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab on Tuesday suspended three doctors of Abbasi Shaheed Hospital after public complaints accused them of unethical practices, unnecessary prescribing and questionable dealings with pharmaceutical companies.
Officials said the decision was taken after repeated reports that some doctors were writing costly and irrational medicines not available in the hospital pharmacy, forcing poor patients to buy them from private shops.
According to KMC officials, the suspended doctors include Dr Mudasir, Dr Nadeem Alam and Dr Mubashir. All three were issued formal suspension orders by the Human Resource Management Department of KMC.
The orders said the doctors have been placed under suspension on grounds of gross misconduct and instructed to report to the HR office immediately.
The officials added that one of the doctors, Dr Mudasir, has a history of similar behaviour and has been suspended nearly eight times in the past for unethical conduct.
Officials said the situation at Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, and even at KMC-run KIGIH, has become “deeply alarming”. They said the pharma-physician nexus is placing a heavy financial burden on low-income patients, who are routinely prescribed drugs that are either irrational, overpriced or completely unavailable at the hospital dispensary. Many patients are sent for diagnostic tests and procedures that are not required and often linked to external laboratories.
KMC officials said they had received several complaints that some doctors were routinely favouring certain pharmaceutical companies in exchange for incentives, including foreign trips, cash payments, monthly targets and gifts.
They added that a comprehensive inquiry has been launched to examine the extent of unethical marketing practices and incentivised prescription trends within KMC hospitals. A new mechanism is being developed to monitor prescribing behaviour, check conflicts of interest and penalise doctors involved in such activities.
A senior KMC official referred to international research and said unethical marketing is a well-documented problem in low- and middle-income countries. He cited a study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, which found that doctors are often influenced by a range of incentives offered by pharmaceutical companies, including travel sponsorships, conference trips abroad, expensive gifts, monthly bonuses and prescription-linked rewards.
According to the study, such incentives directly distort clinical judgement and lead to irrational and harmful prescribing patterns that compromise patient safety.
The official said similar incentives appear to be widely offered in Karachi’s public health system and added that strict administrative action is now being taken to break the cycle.
“Patients at Abbasi Shaheed and other KMC hospitals are poor. They come here for relief, not exploitation. Anyone involved in unethical prescribing will face consequences,” the official said.
He added that the mayor has ordered a detailed audit of prescribing trends, procurement practices and pharmaceutical interactions across all KMC-run health facilities. Further disciplinary measures are expected once the inquiry committee submits its findings.
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