PESHAWAR: HRA to ensure quality health care: minister
PESHAWAR, Dec 9: NWFP Minister for Health Inayatullah has said that proper legislation has been made to make the Health Regularity Authority an independent body. Standards are also being formulated in an effort to ensure the provision of high quality health care in the province.
He said this while speaking as the chief guest at a workshop entitled “Quality standard health care” in Peshawar. The workshop, jointly organised by the Health Regulatory Authority (HRA) and GTZ, was aimed at developing standards to regulate the health-care providers in the private as well as the public sector.
The workshop was attended by health experts, managers, policymakers and representatives of district governments and international agencies. Those who spoke on the occasion included health secretary Abdus Samad Khan, HRA chairman Islam Bahadur Khan, International Society for Quality Health Care representative Barbara Donaldson, Consultant Sylvia Sax, Dr Bernd Appelt and GTZ adviser Dr Abdul Mateen.
Referring to the efforts initiated for strengthening the authority, the health minister said the government felt that the laws to regulate the sector were not framed properly while their implementation was also not satisfactory. In order to overcome this deficiency, efforts were being made to strengthen the HRA.
“Now the amendments have been passed by the provincial assembly and this would enable the authority to work as an independent body,” he said.
The authority had already been assigned the task of compiling the data on private clinics, laboratories and blood banks after registering these institutions.
He said a list compiled by the authority would be publicised widely in order to encourage the health institutions which were providing good health care services and to discourage those that were providing substandard services. He expressed the hope that the workshop participants would present valuable suggestions to improve health care services in the province.
The chairman of the authority, Islam Bahadar Khan, said the HRA was chartered to regulate health care services in a sound manner so that the interests of all stakeholders could be safeguarded.
He said the values, perspectives and views of all the sides would be taken into account before the formulation of standards dealing with health care delivery.
Sylvia Sax, Barbara Donaldson and Dr Bernd also spoke on the occasion. They underscored the need for identifying health delivery patterns, analysing the same and then formulating the standards. They also underlined the need for creating awareness among the people about patients’ rights.
They were of the opinion that certain partnerships needed to be formed. They also highlighted the need for monitoring the HRA’s performance.—PPI
