The Pakistan Nursing and Midwifery Council (PMNC) has cancelled the registration of 45 nursing colleges across the country over non-fulfilment of the required criteria besides declaring all kinds of admissions in these institutions as illegal.
During its 3rd session, the council directed to closing of 45 nursing institutes and colleges functioning in various parts of the country without having prescribed criteria in the rules. According to sources, the council took such decisions in a meeting/session held last month under the chairmanship of Jawad Amin Khan, the president of PMNC.
During the inspection, the body found 45 institutes and colleges lacking the criteria and restrained them from granting further admissions in any discipline of the degree or diploma programmes.
Also read: Govt establishes Pakistan Nursing and Midwifery Council
Meanwhile, around 100 institutions were observed to be at par with the council’s policies. Subsequently, the council decided to issue no objection certificates (NOCs) to them as mentioned in the minutes of the council’s inspections.
The banned institutions were mainly lacking the faculty, infrastructure, laboratories, equipment and other mandatory requirements.
According to the council’s decision, the list of colleges declared illegal includes 22 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), 12 in Punjab and 11 in Sindh.
Read more: Crackdown on illegal nursing schools likely
According to a well-informed official at the PMNC, four other nursing institutes were under consideration by the council to be banned in the future as they have poor academic and infrastructural arrangements. “Karachi Institute of Nursing, Karachi, Asian College of Nursing, Hyderabad, Dr Ruth College of Nursing, Karachi and SMCA College of Nursing might be shown the door against unfulfilment of set rules,” the official said.
Earlier, PMNC President Jawad Amin Khan told a Senate standing committee that the council was taking action against all illegal practices. “I assure you, some significant progress will come into view after a small period as I have assumed charge as president of PMNC of late,” he assured the parliamentary body.
He also informed the upper house that the newly-elected council conducted 148 inspections in 45 days to examine the colleges’ standards on whether they were offering nursing education to their enrolled students or not.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 20th, 2023.
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