RAWALPINDI: Adviser to Punjab Chief Minister on Health Khawaja Salman Rafique on Saturday ordered equipping the basic health units (BHUs), tehsil headquarters hospitals and the district headquarters hospitals with all facilities.

He issued the directives to all the district coordination officers and the executive district officers (health) of Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal and Jhelum while presiding over a meeting.

The meeting reviewed the implementation of the Punjab healthcare reforms roadmap.

Mr Rafique said under the roadmap all health facilities in rural and urban areas would be upgraded and the vacant posts of doctors and specialists filled.

Besides, the provision of medicines, equipment, presence of doctors and paramedical staff would be ensured. He said a rationalised salary package for doctors would be evolved.

He said the district governments enjoyed the powers to procure machinery and appoint doctors in hospitals.

Secretary Health Jawad Rafique giving salient features of the roadmap said the entire core issues relating to the health sector had properly been addressed after thorough consultation with experts. He asked the EDOs to finalise a list of medicines and equipment needed by the health centres.

He also said unauthorised leaves of doctors and medical staff would not be tolerated. The preparations for the dengue programmes and polio eradication activities were also reviewed.

Commissioner Zahid Saeed asked the DCOs and the EDOs health to work on a war-footing to achieve the targets fixed under the chief minister’s roadmap.

The participants of the meeting also spoke about their experiences and updated the meeting on the progress of development schemes.

The superintending engineer of the building department briefed the meeting about the status of the ongoing annual development programmes in the health sector of Rawalpindi division.

Published in Dawn March 1st , 2015

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