Sehat Sahulat Programme being extended to entire KP

PESHAWAR: The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has completed all the preparations for extension of Sehat Sahulat Programme to all population of the province and chalked out a phase-wise plan, a meeting was told on Tuesday.

Chief Minister Mahmood Khan presided over the meeting, said a handout. In the first phase, the programme would be extended to Chitral, Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Malakand, Swat and Shangla districts by October this year. In the second phase, the programme would be extended to Abbottabad, Mansehra, Battagram, Torghar and Kohistan districts by November 2020. In the 3rd phase, it would be extended to Haripur, Swabi, Mardan, Buner, Nowshera, Charsadda and Peshawar by November 2020. Under the 4th phase of the plan, the programme would be extended to Kohat, Hangu, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan and Tank by January 1, 2021.

The chief minister directed that all the projects with regard to the provision of quality medicines, availability of doctors and allied staff, recruitment of doctors in merged areas and provision of standard medical equipment should be completed on a priority basis.

“Provision of the best healthcare facilities to the people was one of the topmost priority areas of his government for which all the available resources are being utilised,” he added. The meeting was informed that extension of Sehat Sahulat Programme to newly-merged tribal areas had already been completed whereas the extension of this programme to all populations of the settled districts would also be ensured by the end of this year. It was told that 1299 medical officers have been recruited whereas recruitment of 100 specialists, 300 medical officers and 219 Emergency Medical Officers for the merged areas is in progress.

Three hospitals have been established to effectively deal with the pandemic of Covid-19 that include Peshawar Institute of Cardiology, Women and Children Hospital Rajjar in Charsadda and Pathology Centre at Nishtarabad. Independent monitoring units were being established in the merged areas for which appointment orders of the candidates will be issued by the mid of September this year.

Efforts are also underway to ensure all-time availability of doctors, nurses, paramedics and other health facilities in the newly merged tribal districts. Procurement, transportation and warehousing of medicines, vaccines and disposables for merged areas has been completed. Distribution and installation of medical and non-medical equipment in the secondary hospitals of the merged areas would also be started by September 2020.

It was further told that 9 Nursing Schools of the province are being upgraded to Nursing Colleges for which preparation for PC-I is in progress. The meeting was briefed about the proposed plan for the revamping of the Health Department and the proposed model for outsourcing of clinical and non-clinical services in hospitals.

The meeting was informed that the remodelling of Basic Health Units and Rural Health Centre is an essential part of the overall reform strategy of the government.