Lahore, March 27 A patient with a mental disorder in the Punjab province of Pakistan drove away a hospital's ambulance to another health facility by posing himself as the new medical superintendent (MS), an official said on Friday.
The incident took place on Wednesday in Lahore, which caused a security alarm as this eastern city is currently hosting Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches.
According to an official of the Punjab Institute of Mental Health (PIMH) in Lahore, Rehanul Haq, 52, a mentally challenged patient, tricked the hospital staff and drove its ambulance to the Government Shahdara Teaching Hospital, about 15 km from his health facility.
"Upon reaching Shahdara Hospital, he introduced himself as the new medical superintendent (MS) of the (PIMH). The officials at Shahdara Hospital were confused as they were not informed about the arrival of the new MS," Dr. Nauman Mazhar of PIMH said.
"His way of talking and tone were similar to those of a qualified and professional official. A senior administrator contacted the administration of PIMH regarding the abrupt change of MS. The situation became clear when the dress of the new MS bore the initials 'PIMH'. The administrator then informed the PIMH staff about the initials on his dress, which confirmed that he is a 'missing patient' of the institute," Mazhar said.
He said that patient Rehanul Haq, along with an ambulance, had gone missing on Wednesday morning. Haq had been under treatment in the Special Medical Ward since 2022.
The hospital administration alerted the police about the theft of an ambulance.
"Given the prevailing security situation in Lahore, which is currently hosting Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches and international players, the report triggered high alert across Lahore," police officer Mohammad Nasir said.
"During the investigation, police reviewed records showing that three ambulances had left PIMH. Two were later traced moving towards Shadman, while the route of the third was detected on The Mall Road, Lahore," Nasir said.
"While efforts were underway to trace the vehicles, an official of PIMH received a call from Shahdara Hospital confirming the presence of the missing patient along with the ambulance," Nasir added.
A doctor's panel has been formed to investigate the security lapse at the PIMH.