Privatisation of Punjab medical teaching institutions: Board of governors to control, supervise big hospitals

LAHORE: As Young Doctors Association (YDA) and Grand Health Alliance (GHA) flex their muscles to oppose implementation of the Punjab Medical Teaching Institutions (Reforms) Ordinance 2019, the Punjab government has banned all sorts of political activities, gatherings on the premises of hospitals/ educational institutions.

According to the notification, it is suggested that some miscreants working in hospitals are trying to disrupt provision of healthcare services delivery to the patients by using unfair means. This situation is intolerable. Keeping in view these facts, the competent authority passed the directions to ban protests and rallies by any forum working in hospitals/ educational institutions and ban displaying anti-government banners, posters and other materials. It also ordered for ensuring strict implementation of directions at all levels. The elements disobeying these directions will be dealt strictly under the relevant laws.

The YDA and GHA have unanimously rejected the promulgation of Punjab Medical Teaching Institutions (Reforms) Ordinance 2019, and vowed to resist its implementation at all levels. They condemned government’s attempt to enforce a law, which has already beenunanimously rejected by all professional medical bodies as anti-patients and anti-doctors legislation.

Speaking at a press conference here at Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) on Tuesday, YDA President Dr Qasim Awan and General Secretary Dr Salman Haseeb, along with GHA representatives Hafiz Dilawar and Aashiq Ghaus, said that it was a grave injustice to run public hospitals established on public tax money, in a private manner. Others in presence were YDA representatives from PIC, Services Hospital, Mayo Hospital, Jinnah Hospital, Lahore General Hospital, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, nurses, paramedics and other staff. “The government has stripped thousands of doctors, nurses, paramedics and allied health professionals of their civil servant status with a stroke of pen,” they added.

They said that the government had privatised the healthcare services, which would deprive poor patients of their basic right to free-of-cost healthcare. “Majority of population does not afford private treatment; therefore, the new law will tantamount to giving death sentence to the poor patients,” they added.

Dr Salman Haseeb said that board of governors (BoG) would run hospitals, which would be authorised to outsource services, hire employees, fire staff and provide services on free, subsidised or on full payment, depending on the budget. He said the PTI government had been able to implement the law in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa because doctors’ one-year ad hoc service was converted into three-year contract. “Whereas in Punjab, former chief minister Shahbaz Sharif had regularised doctors’ ad hoc services; therefore, the policy, which is enforced in KP, could not be implemented in Punjab,” he added.

They announced holding GHA Punjab’s meeting on Thursday and also convene YDA Punjab’s central and general council meeting on Sept 6 with options to besiege Governor’s House and Punjab Assembly to put pressure on the government to withdraw the ordinance.

They also announced starting a full-scale province-wide protest movement after Ashura-e-Muharram, and also take the legal route to stop implementation of the law in medical teaching institutions.

Meanwhile, it may be mentioned that Punjab Medical Teaching Institutions (Reforms) Ordinance 2019 would be extended to whole of Punjab, which will apply to Medical Teaching Institutions (MTIs) and that it comes into force at once. A provincial policy board comprising five to seven members would oversee and supervise the functioning of the MTIs. They will not be government officers, and will be selected on the recommendation of Search and Nomination Committee for three-year term each. Chairperson would be elected.

It will ensure minimum service delivery standard, keep and maintain e-record of medical services, updated e-inventories, audit of medical and other records, recommend policies for MTIs improvement. The policy board would meet thrice a year in addition to an annual meeting.

The Board of Governors (BoG) would control and supervise the MTIs’ functioning. The BoG, assisted by secretary of the Board, would comprise of five to seven members. The management committee would comprise of hospital director, medical director, nursing director, finance director and two persons nominated by the Board on the recommendation of the Dean. The MTI being a constituent college is subject to a Universities Act, Vice-Chancellor of the University would head the Management Committee with the Dean acting as the deputy-head.

Meanwhile, Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has vehemently rejected the impression being created with regard to privatisation of public sector teaching institutions. “Neither have hospitals been privatised nor there’s any threat to jobs of government officials/officers,” she said, adding that the MTIs, instead, were being more empowered to further facilitate patients in hospitals in the province. Rejecting such information, she said no medical teaching hospital had been privatised under the MTI Ordinance. She said that doctors would be allowed to do institutional private practice under the ordinance.

She condemned certain vested elements for their politics of misleading the public with regard to the MTIs Ordinance and warned to refrain from it. “The Punjab government will not allow vested elements to disrupt provision of healthcare services to patients in hospitals,” she warned.