KARACHI, Oct 31: The city government is yet to get its first cardiac disease centre fully operational for want of approval of appointments of required staff by the Sindh government.
The city government’s Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases, the second public sector cardiac institute in the city, had started its ambulatory and diagnostic services five months back, but was unable to launch emergency and indoor services.
It was because a related summary on the creation of 398 posts for the first phase of the centre was still awaiting consideration and orders by the Sindh Chief Minister, said sources in the health circle.
In Sept 2004, the city government had moved the authorities concerned for approval of the sanctioned new establishment (SNE), seeking among other actions, an approval of creation and appointments of 671 posts from grades one to 20 for the KIHD. But, the matter could not be expedited for “want of certain clarifications” due to bureaucratic lethargy.
Later, however, having the approval of the local government department and others at the helm of affairs, the SNE issue was once again raised, but to no avail again, added the source.
The former city government, which had spent Rs30 million on the renovation of an old campus of the Karachi Medical and Dental College – where the KIHD is located – and procurement of various equipment, had also allocated an amount of Rs48.85 million in its current budget for staff salaries, it was learnt.
According to the plan, the institute is to be started in the first phase with various services, including an 18-bed cardiac emergency, 19-bed CCU, 80-bed indoor patients deptt, and diagnostic facilities like ECG, X-ray, laboratory, ETT (exercise tolerance test), Echo Doppler Studies, angiography and cardiac catheterization, angioplasty and special clinics, including hypertension, cholesterol, rheumatic heart diseases and pace maker clinics.
In the second phase, a new purpose-built building will be constructed for cardiac surgery and paediatric cardiology, which will add another 280 beds, bringing the institute’s total capacity to 400 beds.
Work in the first phase including installation of latest equipment has been completed and emergency and indoor services would be launched as soon as administrative approvals with regard to the SNE and recruitment are made, said the source.
When contacted, a high official of the KIHD, Dr Imtiaz Haroon, who is on deputation from the Sindh government, said the city government with support from experts had already finalized details of posts needed for the entire project and had also agreed to appoint staff through the Sindh Public Service Commission.
It is likely that the much needed approval would be accorded after Eidul fitr after the chief minister returns from Umrah, he added.
Located in former district central, the KIHD was aimed at providing cardiac emergency services to the population of at least nine adjacent towns, which would ultimately reduce the burden from the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, run by the federal government.
In the absence of the chief minister’s approval, costly equipment and gadgets imported for the institute are not being utilized at an optimum, while on the other hand it is likely that if the awaited policy decision is deferred further, the equipment could turn faulty or non-functional, said an independent source.
According to a source, during a period of four months (up to Oct 6), as many as 6,121 patients have visited the OPD and have availed the ECG facility, while the ETT, ECHO angiography or angioplasty were performed on 1,092 patients.
