April 27, 2007	Friday	Rabi-us-Sani 09, 1428

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ISLAMABAD, April 26: The provinces have expressed inability to immediately initiate institution-based private practice in public sector hospitals, saying such a move can upset the entire health system.

Provincial health secretaries at a meeting here on Thursday urged the government to complete its homework before taking any final decision about the launch of the institution-based private practice.

The NWFP representative recalled that an abrupt introduction of the system in the province in 2002 had become quite contentious and had led to widespread protests by medics. Punjab also had a similar word of caution for the government.

Even the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences which volunteered to launch the system said it needed assistance to be ready for it.

“Furthermore, the provinces demanded additional funds to overcome manpower, logistics and infrastructural deficiencies at their hospitals,” a source said.

However, the provinces agreed in principle that an institution-based private practice was required to improve the quality of healthcare in government hospitals.

Although Federal Health Minister Nasir Khan conceded that the proposed system was a good option for regulating private practice of government doctors, improving healthcare delivery in public sector hospitals and that it would be beneficial for hospitals themselves, he failed to suggest a way forward.

The views of the provinces were in line with a report presented by the health ministry’s committee on initiation of institution-based private practice, which suggested 3-5 years for hospitals to be prepared for the system and doctors to get mentally prepared for it.

The committee in its recommendations suggested that the launching of the system should be gradual, phased and voluntary and that too after developing a consensus among specialists on the issue.

It also proposed division of specialists into three cadres. The proposal envisaged that specialists nearing retirement should be exempted from mandatory institution-based private practice and others, except newly-recruited ones, should be given up to five years to prepare themselves for the system.

Junior doctors or newly-recruited ones, it suggested, should immediately start institution-based private practice.