ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) was to construct various health care centres in the federal capital, with plots of land earmarked for them, but the civic agency has not taken any concrete steps to do so, leading to the two main hospitals in the city, Polyclinic and the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), being overburdened by patients.

According to CDA documents, the civic agency has specified over 25 plots for the construction of health care infrastructure, mostly dispensaries, in developed sectors. The CDA was to build dispensaries on 18 of these plots, in absence of which residents of the federal capital have to go to the two main hospitals with minor infections and diseases as well.

The CDA has also in the past auctioned several plots for the establishment of clinics. A plot for a clinic is sold at half the price of a commercial plot.

However, in one of its several questionable decisions, the CDA board changed the use of several plots earmarked for a clinic, “allowing” owners of the plots to construct commercial plazas on them.

According to the CDA documents, a total of seven plots have been set aside in the F sectors for the construction of health care institutions. Of these, just one has been used for building a dispensary on in F-7/4, Bazaar no 4.

In the G sectors, the oldest sectors in the city, the CDA had set aside 15 plots for the construction of health facilities of which seven have been utilised for the construction of health care facilities including Polyclinic and the CDA Hospital.

The documents reveal that one health centre is operating in G-7/3-2, one in G-6/2 and one each in G-8/4, G-9 and G-10.

Similarly, 16 plots were reserved for the establishment of healthcare facilities in sectors I-8, I-9, I-10 and I-12.

“Thousands of patients visit Polyclinic and Pims for emergency treatment each day. If dispensaries are established and equipped with the proper facilities including X-ray and ultrasound machines, the two main hospitals would have a much decreased case load,” said Dr Sharif Astori of Polyclinic.

He said the Pims, CDA and Polyclinic dispensaries in various sectors should also be upgraded along with the construction of new ones.

“Polyclinic has over 30 dispensaries in various areas including President Colony, Parliament House and Supreme Court,” he added.

A CDA official said the federal government, the ministry of health and the CDA are responsible for the construction of health centres and dispensaries in Islamabad.

“All of three stakeholders are to blame for not paying heed to the growing need for establishing health care institutions in the city,” he said.

There are five major public hospitals in the city including Pims, Polyclinic, the National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, the CDA hospital and the Federal Hospital in Chak Shahzad. Of these, Pims and Polyclinic see more cases as patients also come here from Kashmir, Murree, Rawalpindi, Jhelum and other areas.

When asked, Mayor and CDA chief Sheikh Ansar Aziz agreed that it was the CDA’s responsibility to construct dispensaries in developed sectors.

He said he has now started focusing on this project and that the first small hospital will be built in F-6.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2017