Health reform: CPSP, Health Department at loggerheads

Department seeks rationalisation of postgraduates passing examinations.

LAHORE:

The Health Department and the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) are at loggerheads post-graduate (PG) training at teaching hospitals in the province.

The CPSP has written to Health Secretary Babar Hayat Tarar asking him to withdraw two letters the Health Department had written to the CPSP in January.

The Health Department had written the letters on January 17.

The first letter read, “PG training seats are meant for equitable distribution between various qualifications but the major chunk is utilised for FCPS Part II trainees...70 per cent of all training slots are concentrated in Lahore.” It alleged that the CPSP was passing a large number of FCPS Part I candidates. “The quantum of passing candidates needs to be rationalised,” the Health Department had recommended.



The second letter read: “No government employee would be spared to conduct supervisory, examining or any other similar duty by the CPSP without the government’s permission. The CPSP must inform the Health Department and/or head of the relevant medical institution at least four weeks in advance.”

The CPSP responded on January 31 saying that the Fellowship of College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan had international recognition at par with those awarded by Royal Colleges of UK and Canada and its fellows’ services were internationally recognised.

The letter read that the CPSP executive committee regretted that the health secretary had sought to restrict the postgraduate academic functions of its senior teachers and trainees. Challenging some of the allegations, the letter said of the 9,877 trainees in the Punjab, 4,600 were from Lahore [46.57 per cent], not 70 per cent as the department had claimed. This included doctors at private institutions and those serving the armed forces.

Secondly, FCPS I candidates passed exams based on their performance, the CPSP had nothing to do with the high pass percentage, the letter read.

While the government was right in wishing that most public medical institutions in small cities should get accreditation, the CPSP would only accredit those that met its stringent criteria, the letter said.

Furthermore, the letter stated that it would not be possible for the CPSP to meet the requirement of giving a four-week notice in case of “examinership” duties as it would compromise the transparency of exams. Examiners were usually informed a few days in advance so that the candidates did not know who the examiners were or where they would be posted.

“The CPSP executive committee expects you to withdraw both letters as the actions threatened will force us to reconsider our policy of accreditation of institutions, appointment of supervisors and training of postgraduates in public sector institutions, which would affect the educational standards and patient care at public sector institutions in the largest province of our country,” the CPSP letter states.

Health Secretary Babar Hayat Tarar told The Express Tribune that Health Department had only forwarded recommendations to the CPSP. He said students were awarded degrees on percentile basis in many countries across the world. “We have a limited number of seats so we should pass students in according to the availability of seats. It is true that 70 per cent of postgraduate seats are in Lahore even though the CPSP states this is only for FCPS seats,” he said. He said informing the Health Department a month before assigning duties to supervisors would not compromise the confidentiality of exams. “Doctors must go for CPSP duties, but they should seek permission from heads of their institutions,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2014.