LAHORE, March 22: The Punjab government has sought technical assistance from Australia for launching the first University of Medical and Health Sciences in Lahore.

A request was made on Friday by Punjab Health Minister Prof Mahmood Ahmad Chaudhry while briefing Australian High Commissioner H. C. Brown about the proposed university plan at Sheikh Zayed Hospital. He earlier visited the building and saw classrooms and laboratories. Currently, the Institute of Nursing is functioning in the proposed building.

He requested the Australian government to provide the services of a vice-chancellor, a controller of examinations, a registrar and five professors in basic medical sciences subjects for five years to launch the project.

Prof Chaudhry said the qualified professionals would also be required to train the local talent to continue the project in the best possible manner.

Mr Brown assured the minister that he would send his recommendations to his government to send a team of technical experts to assess the project and then nominate the services of required academic professionals.

Briefing the envoy, Prof Chaudhry said the standard of medical education in the Punjab had become stale under the Punjab University since long. He said the PU had around 300 affiliated colleges and was conducting over 100 degrees and diplomas examinations annually.

He said the government was also facing problems as the number of medical graduates could not be increased to meet the ever increasing need of doctors in peripheries. Besides, he said there was no representation of nursing and other health-related sciences in the existing medical education system.

Prof Chaudhry said the establishment of the new university, for which the president and the Punjab governor had already given approval in principle, would entirely restructure the medical education in the province. The new university would develop modern curricula and examination system to enhance the quality of education.