A third-year student, Mustafa, says they are planning to form a committee comprising two to three students from each year so that the entire student body can be adequately and appropriately represented in the discussions on the topic. “We want everyone to know we are serious about our future,” he says.
“We have also discussed opting for the legal route but since nothing is set in stone, it is premature to elaborate on that.” However, it may be too late to take action once a bill proposing the elevation has been tabled in the parliament, he adds. “We are students of medicine and we do not know much about legal proceedings. But we need to prepare ourselves for the course of action that might be required.”
Most SMC students say their primary concern is maintaining the college’s affiliation with the Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), which is the authority that confers degrees on them.
It is the uncertainty of the proposal that is making students so anxious and they complain that they have been left completely out of the loop.
“I have no idea what SMC’s fate will be. The name [Dow] matters and eventually the degree matters as well. If this change takes place then many of us may have to re-evaluate our options,” says Ahzam, who has just begun his “long journey of medicine” at SMC.
On the other hand, Osamah, currently taking his fourth year examinations, says “perhaps this move will be good for SMC”. Adding that while there was “no real advantage to being affiliated with DUHS except for the degree”, Osamah points out the “lack of facilities” SMC students face compared to those directly enrolled in Dow. “The investment [into SMC] was never really made. I think it’s because they always thought the two would separate,” he suggests but cautions that his opinion may change when he goes back to college.
His classmate, Anas, agrees to a certain degree. “The Sindh Medical University (SMU) may not offer the best standard for the first few batches but maybe it will be better in the long run. However, you get to study once and those students [initial batches] will end up suffering,” he points out, adding that if he was not busy with exams, he too would join the student activities and deliberations over the issue. The college’s alumni, led by Dr Javed Suleman, who was involved in the cardiovascular care of President Asif Ali Zardari prior to his becoming the head of state, have been pushing for the elevation, saying that SMC’s quality of education needs to be restored. However, the proposed SMU requires a teaching hospital so that the students can carry out clinical studies, a service currently provided by SMC’s neighbour Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC). But for its part, JPMC has long been campaigning for its own university under the federal jurisdiction. Joint executive director at JPMC and in charge of accident and emergency ward, Dr Seemin Jamali says their stance on a university under federal control is unchanged.
Management at Dow refused to comment, however, a senior official who requested anonymity, says the administration has been receiving phone calls from concerned parents of SMC students.
The official says they demand that SMC should not lose its affiliation with DUHS.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2011.
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