ISLAMABAD: Citizens on Sunday demanded of the authorities concerned to take strict action against illegal practice of quacks in rural areas of twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
According to them, these quacks had established their clinics in different areas and playing with the health of innocent people.
They said that taking advantage of weak health infrastructure in rural areas and absence of doctors in rural health centers and basic health units, many homeopathic doctors had also started cheating people.
Despite the claims made by the authorities of taking actions against the quackery, twin cities are still the victim of quack practices, Rasheed Awan, a resident of Bharakho said.
He complained these quacks had no degree or knowledge but just for minting money they are running clinics in thickly populated areas.
Another resident of the federal capital, Muhammad Akbar said there are many who hold the degree of homeopathy but giving patients allopathic medicines moreover claimed themselves, allopathic doctor, he added.
“I took my ill mother to a homeopathic doctor who runs his clinic as an allopathic consultant. He gave her wrong medicines which affected her both kidneys instantly, “Yasmeen Akram a resident of Rawalpindi said.
‘’Later I took my mother to civil hospital where doctors told us that wrong medication had damaged her both kidneys,” she added.
Zaheer Azam, a citizen said that once I felt pain in my chest and visited the nearest clinic where doctor charged quite a low fee and believed to be curative.
‘’I got better immediately as he injected a painkiller, after that, I became accustomed to painkillers which ultimately turned me a patient of high blood pressure. “
Dr. Sobia Faisal, a medical practitioner said quackery is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in the country.
She said quackery is one of the reasons to spread Hepatitis C as unclean medical instruments are being used in check up processes.
She said that these quacks run their clinics mostly in underdeveloped areas to making people fool as they used antibiotic and painkillers to give instant relief to patients against the petty amount.
She said their low standard medicines created severe infections while infected equipment caused the transmission of many communicable diseases among patients.
Chairman National Council for Homeopathy Rawalpindi Mehmood ul Haq Abbasi said “We annul the certificates of those homeopathic doctors who do not practice homeopathy and deal patients through allopathic medicines instead.
When contacted, an official of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) said that the council has been running a countrywide campaign to stop illegal and unlicensed medical practice.
He said that quacks are the main source of spreading contagious diseases and also causing disabilities among the people.
He said PMDC would continue its efforts to eliminate the menace of quackery which was playing havoc with the lives of the poor patients in the country.