KARACHI: City govt to revive health facilities at schools
By Mukhtar Alam
KARACHI, July 29: The education department of the city government has initiated work to revive forgotten health services for students at schools in Karachi, it was learnt on Thursday.
A source in the education department said the executive district officer (education) was preparing a plan, under which support would be sought from the city government, provincial education and health departments and federal government to provide proper working places for doctors, working under the Sindh government's school health service, besides adequate supply of medicines and equipment.
The Sindh government would also be urged to cancel detailment of doctors, who were originally appointed for school health services, but were now posted at hospitals and other institutions administered by the Sindh health department.
It was learnt that there were 390 sanctioned posts for doctors under the school health schemes for government run city schools, against which only 160 were available for schools, while the rest were working somewhere else.
The health scheme for schools was introduced for the first time in 1954, and then revitalized during the period of prime minister Muhammad Khan Junejo in 1987, with objectives of ensuring a day-to-day general health check-up of students, treatment and providing them medicines at schools, maintained a source.
However, with the passage of time, the scheme fell prey to the administrative negligence, and most doctors concerned kept drawing salaries for long without attending to students.
Poor monitoring, shortage of accommodation and unavailability of medicines, political appointments marred the scheme of utility, claimed some doctors concerned.
In a meeting with EDO (Education) Gul Muhammad Hajiano on Thursday, the deputy director of the school health service, Dr Asif Zaman, discussed ways and means of reviving the scheme. A number of school health service doctors were also present on the occasion.
It was resolved during the meeting that a PC-1 should be moved by the EDO for funding by the city, provincial and federal governments for new appointments of doctors, supply of medicines and equipment for them, development of a few mobile clinics.
The doctors also desired proper financial incentives and facilities similar to those received by other doctors working at other organizations of the health department, added a source privy to the meeting.
As part of future planning, it had been viewed at the meeting that the government should also be moved to ensure additional construction at schools wherever the need arose, said the EDO, adding that he would approach the authorities concerned for cancellation of detailment of school health service doctors.
Talking to Dawn, Mr Hajiano said he would move the proper forum for sparing a reasonable amount available with the school management committees for the health service until the Sindh health department was able to make adequate budgetary allocations for the service.
He said he would also move the steering committee of the Sindh education department for granting permission to charge Rs20 from every student on account of health service so that health facilities at schools could be run effectively.
