Centre-Sindh tussle to take over JPMC intensifies

KARACHI: A tussle has started between the federal health authorities and the Sindh government to have administrative and financial control of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC), Karachi, and the provincial authorities are resisting attempts by the National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHS, R&C) to take over the tertiary-care health facility by directing the Executive Director JPMC not to attend any meetings of Board of Governors, officials said.

“The Sindh health department has directed the Executive Director JPMC Dr. Seemin Jamali not to attend any meeting of the Board of Governors as it has rejected its constitution. It is still holding talks with the federal health authorities and wants the issue to be resolved through mutual understanding,” an official of the Sindh health department told The News on Monday.

The federal health authorities have constituted an independent board of governors under the Medical Teaching Ordinance (MTI) comprising philanthropists Mushtaq Chhapra, Ms Ronaq Lakhani, Dr Muhammad Irfan Daudi, a consultant surgeon and Rashid Khan, a businessman to run the affairs of JPMC and want convening of its meeting in the current month for the selection of chairman to proceed with the takeover.

In response to the constitution of Board of Governors, Sindh Health Minister Dr. Azra Pechuho wrote a letter to Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr. Faisal Sultan last week and offered that provincial government could continue to manage and operate the JPMC, NICVD and NICH through a “Management and Operations Agreement” with the federal government.

An official of the Sindh health department said instead of responding to Azra’s letter, the federal health authorities directed the Executive Director JPMC to attend the meeting of Board of Governors on April 01, 2021 to select the Chairman of BoG for the JPMC, briefing on MTI law and apprising the board members of their responsibilities.

“The Sindh health department has strongly reacted to this move and asked the JPMC Executive Director not to attend the meeting,” the official said adding an emergency meeting of Sindh health department with health minister Dr. Azra Pechuho was scheduled for Tuesday (today) to decide how to counter the Centre’s move.

Earlier, the National Health Services through another letter to the Board of Governors of the JPMC, apprised them of the BOG meeting on Thursday, April 08, 2021 and directed all the members of board and the Executive Director JPMC to attend the meeting.

Both the provincial and federal health authorities wanted the JPMC administration to follow their respective directives putting the officials in a quandary. Meanwhile, the JPMC employees are planning to shut down the hospital; they said neither Sindh nor the federal government had any interest in resolving the issues faced by patients and the hospital staff, who are working for years without promotion and better working conditions. “There is an extreme shortage of doctors, paramedics, nurses and other staff,” a doctor working in the BPS-17 for the last several years said.

He said only three top officials of the JPMC, including Dr. Seemin Jamali, have been promoted to next grades while dozens of employees were awaiting notification by the Sindh health department for promotions from BPS-16 to 17 and from BPS-17 to 18. Similarly, the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) is not being convened for promotions from BPS-18 to 19, he added.

“In these circumstances, employees at the JPMC are planning to go on strike for an indefinite period until our issues are resolved. We have started our meetings, we are also in contact with staff at NICVD and NICH and planning to shut down all the services at these facilities except emergency services, unless our issues are resolved,” the doctor added.