Nishtar Hospital is a teaching hospital of

Nishtar Medical University Nishtar Medical University () (formerly Nishtar Medical College) is a public sector health sciences university located in Multan, Punjab, Pakistan. It is one of the oldest medical institutions established after the creation of Pakistan. It offe ...

, located in

Multan Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab. Multan is one of the ol ...

, Pakistan. It is a tertiary care hospital, owned by the Government of Punjab. It serves a large population of South Punjab.

Accredited hospital

Nishtar Hospital is accredited by the

College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan The College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan ( ur, , abbreviated as CPSP) is a regulatory college established in 1962 by a special act of the Parliament of Pakistan to oversee the postgraduate medical education and professional development. ...

History

It is named after Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar, former

Governor of Punjab, Pakistan The Governor of Punjab is the appointed head of state of the provincial government in Punjab, Pakistan. Although the Governor is the head of the province on paper, it is largely a ceremonial position; and the main powers lie with the Chief Mini ...

, a

Pakistan Movement The Pakistan Movement ( ur, , translit=Teḥrīk-e-Pākistān) was a political movement in the first half of the 20th century that aimed for the creation of Pakistan from the Muslim-majority areas of British India. It was connected to the per ...

activist, a celebrated companion of the Father of Nation,

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...

. The construction of the Nishtar Hospital block started in 1953. The basic idea and its plan were provided by Dr. M. J. Bhutta. It started functioning with 80 beds on October 1, 1953.

Facilities

The hospital's total bed capacity currently stands at 1,850 beds. It has 24 departments and divisions, over 31 wards, a burn unit, an outpatient, and an Accident & Emergency Department, in addition to 15 operation theaters.

Administration

Shahid Bukhari has been the Medical Superintendent of the hospital since 2019.

2022 incident

In October 2022, it was discovered that multiple abandoned dead bodies which remained unclaimed, were stored on the roof of the hospital instead of proper burial. Later, HOD Anatomy Department revealed that the bodies could not be buried because of policy of handover of corpses to Police, which didn't take place owing to delay. horrific videos and images of multiple deceased people found on the roptop of the Hospital,

in a bad condition circulated on social media. After the pictures and videos came out, questions arose on social media that whose bodies are these and why they are lying helpless. Police and rescue personnel were blamed by a representative of the Hospital for the decomposing remains.

Investigation

Following incident, the Punjab government last night announced an investigation and required the Nishtar Hospital medical superintendent to provide an explanation within three days. A six-person committee was established by the Punjab government to look into the shocking incident. The South Punjab Health Department would get the results of the investigation. The preliminary investigation report was given to Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on October 13, 2022, who then ordered the dismissal of Dr. Mariam Ashraf, the head of the anatomy department at

(NMU), along with the suspension of three doctors, three hospital staff members, and two SHOs of the corresponding police stations.

References

{{Reflist Hospital buildings completed in 1953 Teaching hospitals in Pakistan Hospitals in Multan Buildings and structures in Multan Hospitals established in 1953 Nasreddin Murat-Khan buildings and structures