Fact-check: Yes, CM Punjab Maryam Nawaz's picture is on hospital forms in Lahore

Social media users claim that forms being distributed to patients in public hospitals in Lahore now feature a photo of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif.

The claim is true. Requisition forms at some public hospitals in Lahore do feature the chief minister’s photo as a watermark.

Claim

On May 18, a user on X (formerly Twitter) shared a picture of a CT scan requisition form from Lahore’s government-run Jinnah Hospital, which bore a watermark of Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif.

“Check out the new MRI, Radiology requests forms, colour and Maryam Nawaz’s pic as the watermark,” the user wrote.

The image was widely circulated on X, while some users questioned its authenticity, labelling the form as “fake”.

Fact

Some public hospitals are indeed using requisition forms bearing the picture of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, confirmed doctors and an independent review by Geo Fact Check.

Geo Fact Check’s team visited two public hospitals in Lahore: Jinnah Hospital, and Mayo Hospital.

At both hospitals, we found that test requisition forms for CT scans did bear a watermark of the chief minister’s photo. Requisition forms are issued by the doctors to instruct patients on which tests to get done.

A doctor at Mayo Hospital, who did not want to be named, also confirmed the recent use of forms with the watermark.

While Haroon Hameed, the chief executive officer at Mayo Hospital, told Geo Fact Check that the forms were not printed by the hospital but by a private company contracted to handle printing.

Separately, Hammad Raza Bukhari, public relations officer to the Punjab health minister, said the specialised healthcare and medical education department had taken “strict notice” of the matter and directed all medical superintendents to immediately remove such materials.

He also added that the outsourced company had independently decided to include the chief minister’s photo on the forms.

However, this statement was denied by Hoora Pharma, the outsourced company responsible for printing the forms and conducting the tests.

An employee of Hoora Pharma, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Geo Fact Check that they do not print forms without prior approval from the health ministry.

“Yes, we printed these forms. We printed them for five [public] hospitals in Lahore,” he said over the phone, “We cannot do things on our own. We do what we are told to do.”

Verdict: Requisition forms at some public hospitals in Lahore do feature the watermark of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s photograph.

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