4, April 2005	Monday	24 Safar 1426

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PESHAWAR, April 3: NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani has given the go-ahead for amending laws to give administrative and financial authority to the Health Regulatory Authority, officials said.

“The Health Regulatory Authority (HRA) had been established under the NWFP Medical and Health Institutions and Regulation of Health Care Services Ordinance 2002, to check malpractices in the health sector,” said officials.

According to them, after the passage of one year, the officials working at the HRA realised that they lacked power to tackle financial and administrative powers that hampered their routine affairs.

The ordinance also failed to mention the power of the HRA with regard to policy matters and accounts, which posed further obstacles in the way of its smooth-sailing, the officials added.

They said that the authority also lacked authority to appoint staff, which prompted the officials to seek desired amendments in the ordinance to make it effective for dealing with the problems of unethical medical practices across the province.

They said that now they had given final shape to the proposed amendments in the ordinance for which the chief minister had already given approval.

“The chief minister has directed to present the summary in the next meeting of the provincial cabinet so that the desired amendments could be approved,” said officials.

After being approved by the cabinet, a bill would be tabled in the provincial assembly for its approval from where it would be sent to the governor for assenting it.

Meanwhile, officials at the office of the executive district officer (EDO), health, told Dawn that registration of private hospitals and clinics are not likely to be renewed if they fail to develop a proper network for safe waste disposal.

“We had issued notices to the managements of private clinics and hospitals regarding the development of a proper waste disposal system three months ago, but no response is forthcoming,” the official added.

He said that there were a total of 1,572 private health facilities in the city, generating kitchen and infectious waste, bio-waste, pharmaceutical, chemical and radioactive waste that needed proper disposal.

Officials at the Environmental Protection Agency said that they were constantly in touch with officials from the EDO’s office to convince owners of private clinics and hospitals in the Dabgari Gardens area to set up a proper waste disposal system.

“We have asked the private health institutions to transport their wastage to any of the three teaching hospitals for its safe disposal as incinerators have already been installed there,” the official said.

According to him, the registration of these clinics would not be renewed if they fail to comply with these directives. All hospitals and clinics are required to get a certificate from any of the teaching hospitals, verifying that they have been transporting their waste there, he said.

The official said that a Swedish firm had started developing a mechanism for the hospital waste in the city. It had completed assessment work on the hospital waste management in collaboration with the local health and officials of the EPA, but following the installation of the MMA government in the province, officials working for the Swedish firm disappeared.

Officials at the HRA said that they had been in the process of registration of the clinics and once the amendments were approved by the government, then they would be able to take action against those violating the ordinance.