PMDC bars admission to 17 medical colleges

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PMDC bars admission to 17 medical colleges

Asif Chaudhry Published July 2, 2015

LAHORE: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has stopped 17 public and private sector medical colleges from admitting students for the 2015-16 session for being critically deficient in faculty and other facilities.

Besides, the PMDC has recommended to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination to order closure of four of the colleges for constantly violating rules and regulations.

The PMDC decision has sent a shockwave among students and the administration of colleges as the admission process is to start in coming weeks.

The closure of four institutions will put the future of hundreds of students at stake.

Eight of the 17 colleges are in Punjab, four each in public and private sectors.

Test for admission to government-run medical and dental colleges in Punjab has been scheduled on Aug 30.

The PMDC has advised parents and students to confirm the status of medical colleges before seeking admission to them.

In a letter sent to the ministry on June 25, the PMDC has listed the colleges which have been stopped from holding the admission process. They are: Sahiwal Medical College, Dera Ghazi Khan Medical College, Abbottabad International Medical College, Abbottabad Women Medical College, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan Medical College, Lahore; Shaikh Zayed Medical College, Rahim Yar Khan; Rashid Latif Medical College, Lahore; Pak Red Crescent Medical and Dental College, Lahore; University College of Medicine and Dentistry, Lahore; Hashmat Medical and Dental College, Gujrat; Al-Razi Medical College, Peshawar; Mohammad Bin Qasim Dental and Medical College, Karachi; Federal Medical and Dental College, Islamabad; Pak International Medical College, Peshawar; Indus Medical College, Tando Mohammad Khan (Sindh); Islamic International Medical College, Rawalpindi; and Department of Dentistry, Bacha Khan Medical College, Mardan.

The medical and dental colleges whose closure has been recommended are: Pak Red Crescent Medical and Dental College, Lahore; Hashmat Medical and Dental College, Gujrat; Al-Razi Medical College, Peshawar; and Sahiwal Medical College.

The council has said that the Dera Ghazi Khan Medical College and the Department of Dentistry, Bacha Khan Medical College, Mardan, were functioning without recognition, a violation of rules and regulations.

In separate letters to the provincial health departments and the vice-chancellors and principals concerned, the PMDC has urged them to ensure implementation of its decision.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2015

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Asif Chaudhry is a crime and health reporter for Dawn with over two decades of experience. His reporting focuses on uncovering corruption and highlighting systemic failures within the public sector. He can be found on X at @asif_28.

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Saleem Ullah

Jul 02, 2015 08:42am

There is tug of war between fedral and provincial government. poor students are being sandwiched...

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Basheer DEST

Jul 02, 2015 09:36am

Its not about Students, its about credibility... I have visited some of these medical colleges and the faculty and the facilities are much less than satisfactory... But the students still get the admission to have a sense of purpose, which has been misplaced in their heads by our societies that if its not a doctor or an engineer then its no use at all..!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Something Fishy

Jul 02, 2015 10:08am

PMDC her self is redundant after the 18th amendment and must be abolished. It is provincial matter now. AND pmdc is a big money making machine for some! that is all it boils down to.

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Abid

Jul 02, 2015 10:34am

Fantastic action. Hope they hold their ground and do not take the decision back tomorrow.

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Chao

Jul 02, 2015 11:11am

PMDC is doing a good job maintaining standard of medical education. But its continuing education (CME) condition for qualified doctors is premature. It wants all doctors to get PMDC registration renewed every year with a hefty fee and submission of a certificate of weeks of refresher courses is very difficult for working doctors to obtain because there are not enough available institutions to impart those refresher courses in the country. The result will be that most doctors will get debarred from practice each year only replaced by quacks. The PMDC must withhold the CME condition for at least 5 years more to allow the infrastructure to develop at each DHQ hospital of the country for the refresher courses. If not, the PMDC will be facilitating quacks to grow like mushrooms.

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Imran

Jul 02, 2015 11:41am

@Something Fishy All over the world, accreditation of institutes is a done by the central govt. Just imagine if each province has its own accreditation agency, your degree received in SIndh may not be recognized in Punjab.

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Dr D

Jul 02, 2015 12:41pm

PMDC also needs to look into their own state of affairs... hopeless management with no one answerable.....

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thin_then_speak

Jul 02, 2015 02:50pm

@Something Fishy The redundancy of PMDC is irrelevant as a national level of body for standardizing Health related issues will always be there.

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Aamer Nawaz

Jul 02, 2015 02:58pm

This is the real "Tabdeeli " if this has been done with good intention and in a fair and square manner and if going to be a persistent thing , These are the actions which are going to change every day life and future in a positive way rather than raising the slogans of it !! PMDC has to stop the emotional black mail of the Medical Education in Pakistan as it has been carried out by these preposterous so called "medical colleges" in the last 20 years or so as they exploited the obsession of Parents to have their children become doctors in an economy and culture with narrow professional choices and notoriety bestowed upon the doctors alone (unfortunately not on the paramedical and other allied staff) and they created and nurtured these sham operations to cash on these vulnerabilities of the desperate parents !

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Rauf

Jul 02, 2015 03:13pm

Some one to look in to the examination system also.students from public sector medical colleges having exceptional academic records graduate by scoring far less marks as compared to those from private sector. Resultantly when merit is calculated doctors from private sector excel nd those from public sector lag behind. For instance in Ayyub Medical College Abbottaabad most of the fresh inductees are from private colleges...how;ever they have added qualifications of being relatives senior faculty member.

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@expat

Jul 02, 2015 03:54pm

Bravo. This was long overdue. Its not about the future of the students .Its about attaining a level of medical education as per international standards and sorting out substandard institutes , where quality of education is sacrificed for buisiness. Establishing a medical college is not as simple as any other institute . Maintaining goodwill and sanctity of degrees issued in Pakistan should be the priority. Maintaining quality of education means competent physicians and surgeons serving people. How many of us are willing to get treated by a half baked ,incompetent doctor? Sanctity of human life demands that most stringent standards are set for medical institutes where only the best and the most willing students are trained.

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Shakil Ahmed Khan

Jul 02, 2015 03:57pm

There is no tug of war, previous government issued so many sub par colleges. PM DC actions are correct to weed out these mickey mouse medical colleges putting integrity of medical profession at stakes. If this continues Pakistan medical graduates will not be recognised worldwide and they will not access to higher education or specialised training abroad and dont forget the basic purpose of doctors to save lives if they are sub par, that will cost lives too. PMDC and HEC should only allow credible education in the country and not churn out degrees that are worthless. Please dont make medical education as we have done with BA and MAs who hasnt got the knowledge of A-levels!

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Shakil Ahmed Khan

Jul 02, 2015 04:02pm

@Something Fishy To different things! Higher Education is regulator of education institutions PM DC regulate the profession of Medical and Dental practitioners. Its imperative for graduate to be authorised to practice medicine in Pakistan and validation abroad. If PM DC believe some colleges are sub par, they will not register graduates from these colleges barring them to practice.

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@expat

Jul 02, 2015 04:13pm

@Something Fishy . Abolishing central regulatory bodies like HEC & PMDC will affect the standard of education and the credibility of the degrees issued. PMDC not only regulates medical and dental education, it also works to standardise the best medical practise. It works with international bodies to equalise the Graduate and Post graduate certificates issued in Pakistan with other countries. As federal institutes they also unify and equalise the standard of practice among the federating units and are relatively safe from exploitation. There is a lot of room for improvement though.

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Javed

Jul 02, 2015 04:29pm

Rashid Latif Medical College owned by the owners of Hameed Latif Hospital, what a shame, they have so much money and their college is being ordered to not to admit any student, greedy family!!

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Riaz M M

Jul 02, 2015 05:02pm

It is high time that epidemic of medical colleges is controlled.We are wasting resources on vast numbers of poorly taught doctors for whom we have no jobs and most of female doctors do not work after getting married so resulting in total wastage.It will be far better if resources (parents' money as well as private and public finances)are spent on educating and training for technical professions which are urgently required and which contribute to natinal wealth .No doubt doctors are required in sufficient numbers but this needs to be properly controlled and guided.

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faeza

Jul 02, 2015 05:17pm

I didn't know these even existed

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Bilal

Jul 02, 2015 07:41pm

Good job PMDC. PEC should also take notice of "engineering universities" like Iqra University and COMSATS

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Dr khalid

Jul 03, 2015 01:49am

Let me know the present status of students studying in these colleges?

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Samee

Jul 03, 2015 05:19am

Hashmat Medical and Dental college has already been closed since last year. And all of the students were transferred to other private medical institutes.

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muhammad waleed

Jul 04, 2015 12:07am

what for those students which are already studying in these medical colleges. wht pmdc is thinking for their future

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