PESHAWAR: NWFP finance dept rejects proposal: Service structure for paramedics
By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Oct 30: The Finance Department has rejected the proposed service structure of the paramedic staff working in health care institutions of the NWFP and Fata owing to hefty amount involved in it
, sources in the health department told Dawn on Saturday.
Sources said that the department had proposed a service structure for the paramedic staff on their repeated demands a few months back.
Provincial president of the Paramedical Association, Sirajuddin Burki said that the different governments had been promising to approve the much-awaited service structure for the staff, but no one had accomplished the promise.
"The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government is no exception. We had laid great hopes on the MMA, but it seems that it is not interested in our service structure," he said.
Initially Finance Minister, Sirajul Haq, had also announced approval of the new structure at a meeting held with the office-bearers of the paramedics association, but later on the finance department raised objections over the amount involved in it, which delayed its final approval.
"The department is of the view that the proposed service structure will increase the financial liabilities of the cash- strapped provincial government," the sources claimed.
According to the new service structure, the 57 specialties of have been merged into 14 categories, which include surgery, pathology, radiology, ophthalmology, cardiology, dialysis, pharmacy, pulmonology, anaesthesia, dentistry, physiotherapy, primary health care, primary health care (multi- purpose) and gastroenterology.
Similarly, the existing 8,680 staff members of the paramedics have been divided into eight different categories and grades. According to the new formula, a total of 6,944 paramedics will be in BPS-9, 1,042 in BPS-12, 304 in BPS-14, 216 in BPS-16, 161 in BPS-17, eight in BPS-18, three in BPS-19 and one in BPS-20.
The total per month cost of the government on existing service structure of the paramedics staff is estimated at Rs44.919 million, which will go up to Rs46.134 million, showing an increase of about Rs14.6 million annually.
In the proposed service structure, the department had proposed BPS-9 as the entry point with the basic qualification of matriculation and he or she may ultimately reach the final point of BPS-20.
The office-bearers of the paramedics association also had a meeting with the NWFP chief secretary, who had formed a committee for the resolution of the issue.
The committee in its findings had opposed the promotion of the paramedics up to BPS-20 as it was of the view that the financial implications would increase.
The committee had suggested that the posts to be spread over BPS-9 to BPS-16, which became a matter of contention between the government and the paramedics.
Similarly, the committee had also suggested that the final decision regarding the approval of the proposed service structure should be withheld till the decision of the recently-formed pay and pension commission.
The association's president Sirajuddin Burki told Dawn that most of the staff, including, dispensers, laboratory, X-ray, operation theatre, anaesthesia and ECG technicians retired in the same grades in which they are appointed.
"The paramedics formed a tricycle along with doctors and nurses which provided health care facilities to the patients," he said and added that the doctors and nurses had got their service structure, while the paramedics are running from pillar to post to get a service structure for themselves. Mr Burki said that recently they had also planned a province- wide strike for the acceptance of their demand but upon the persuasion of the health minister, they deferred the strike.
