Govt notifies names for new PMDC council

Panel lacks four faculty members from Sindh and Balochistan

ISLAMABAD: Nearly two months after it had promulgated a new ordinance, the government on Thursday finally approved names to for the new council of the apex medical education and professional regulatory body in the country.

In the notification issued by the Health Ministry on Thursday, 12 names have been approved by Prime Minister Imran Khan under the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) Ordinance 2019.

These include renowned paediatrician Dr Tariq Iqbal Bhutta, Professor Shoaib Hassan Shah and Muhammad Ali Raza have been included as the three members of the civil society on the council.

Others include Professor Aamir Zaman Khan — who will be the clinical faculty member of a public medical college or university representing Punjab on the council.  Prof Aamir previously headed the King Edwards Medical University (KEMU) and currently heads the Fatima Jinnah Medical University in Lahore as its vice chancellor.



Furthermore, Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) Postgraduate Medical Institute Cardiothoracic Surgery’s Prof Dr Amer Bilal has been named as the clinical faculty member from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) on the council.

Prof Dr Khalid Usman has been named as the basic sciences faculty member from Punjab while Prof Dr Umer Farooq will represent K-P.

Further, Prof Dr Saeed Sadiq Hamid — who has been associated with the Aga Khan University in Karachi, and ophthalmologist Dr Sulman Jaffar have been selected as the two members of the council from clinal faculty of private medical colleges.

Professor Dr Muslim Khan from the Khyber College of Dentistry has been included as one of the two clinical faculty members from public dental colleges. He will represent K-P in this rotation.

Prof Zafarullah Chaudhry has been named as the representative of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan and Major-General Professor Saleem Ahmed Khan has been included to sit on the seat reserved for the Surgeon General of the Armed Forces Medical Service.

These members now have 15 days to convene the meeting of the council and elect a president and vice president of the council from amongst them.

Curiously, the list includes only 12 names instead of the minimum 17 names as required under the PMDC Ordinance 2019. Those not named in the initial list include the two clinical and two science faculty members of public medical colleges or universities from Sindh and Balochistan.

However, the council can hold a meeting since 12 is the minimum number of people required to hold a session.

The list does not include the name of Shaukat Khanum Hosptial Chief Executive Officer Dr Faisal who was rumoured to be a front runner to head the council. However, his name was not included in the final list of names approved on Thursday.

No more political interference

Even as the Punjab government remains embroiled in accusations of political interference over the suspension of Benazir Bhutto General Hospital (BBH) Medical Superintendent Dr Tariq Nizami following his spat with Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat and the removal of the Rawalpindi District Health Authority chief for probing interference in the affairs of a tehsil headquarters hospital, the provincial health department has now decided to authorise the Punjab Health Services Director-General to appointment and transfer health department officials up to basic pay scale (BPS) grade 16 up to the District Health Authority’s chief executive.

In a notification issued by the primary and secondary healthcare department of Punjab, the Health Services divisional director could send recommendations for officers up to BPS-16 to the Health Services DG.



Reforms in health

Meanwhile, Federal Health Minister Aamer Mehmood Kiani on Thursday said the government had initiated a reforms agenda for the entire health infrastructure of the country. He said this during a surprise visit of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad. He added that there would be no compromise on the healthcare delivery system and it would be upgraded

He said that special attention was being paid to improving patient care in two major hospitals of the federal capital which are catering to the bulk of patients. He said that the government would make Pims a model hospital by ensuring the provision of all necessary facilities, resources and funds to improve patient care.

WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT IN RAWALPINDI AND APP 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 1^st, 2019.