Yasmin Rashid criticizes wearable camera policy as headline-friendly sham
Dr. Yasmin Rashid warns body-worn cameras in hospitals may breach patient privacy, reduce trust, and fail healthcare reforms.
ISLAMABAD / LAHORE – (Web Desk) – Former Punjab Health Minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid has strongly criticized the provincial government’s decision to require body-worn cameras for nurses and frontline hospital staff. Speaking from Kot Lakhpat Jail via her lawyer Shayan Bashir, she warned that continuous recording in medical settings could undermine patient trust and violate confidentiality.
Dr. Rashid highlighted that patients share sensitive personal information—physical, psychological, and reproductive—because medical spaces are expected to be private.
She emphasized that even knowing they are being recorded may discourage honest disclosure, especially among vulnerable groups.
Dr. Rashid, a gynecologist, expressed particular concern for women’s healthcare, stating that recording childbirth and gynecological care crosses ethical boundaries. She criticized the government for prioritizing surveillance over meaningful healthcare reform, noting there was no consultation with medical staff or patient-rights groups.
She also questioned the security and ownership of recorded footage, warning of potential political misuse in a system with weak data protection.
She argued that cameras cannot solve structural issues like staff shortages, medicine gaps, or broken equipment, and instead suggested patient exit interviews, grievance redressal, and staff training. Calling the policy “headline-friendly” rather than reformative, she stressed that optics should not replace trust.
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Healthcare professionals, including Pakistan Medical Association and Young Doctors Association leaders, echoed her concerns, labeling the policy ineffective and potentially harmful to patients and medical staff alike.
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