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LAHORE, May 9: The Punjab cabinet approved on Friday the draft Medical and Health Institutions Bill which replaces the controversial boards of governors in the autonomous health institutions with the boards of managements.
The draft bill has been prepared on the recommendations of Mujaddid Mirza Commission, constituted on the demand of doctors to look into the affairs of the autonomous health institutions.
The cabinet approved the draft bill at a meeting presided over by Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi at the Civil Secretariat. It would soon be tabled in the assembly for legislation.
The board of managements would also comprise doctors. Clauses have also been included in the draft bill to ensure autonomy of the health institutions and provision of modern health facilities to the people.
It provides for college academic councils comprising 12 professors of the medical college concerned. The senior-most professor would be the chairperson of the council which would have powers to revise syllabus, manage students affairs and conduct audit.
Health Secretary Wasim Hasan Afzal informed the cabinet that under the proposed law the boards regarding the posting of doctors in the health institutions would function under the college principals concerned. They would comprise a sitting and a retired professor of the department concerned, a representative of doctors practising privately and one representative each of the health department and Punjab Public Service Commission.
Under the new arrangements, junior doctors and nurses were being given powers to deal with day-to-day affairs of the hospitals.
The chief minister said the government had decided to improve operation theatres and other health facilities in all big hospitals of the province within a year.
Under the plan, 200 operation theatres in 18 teaching hospitals would be refurbished while new one would be established at a total cost of Rs1 billion.
The chief minister said the government was also concentrating on the improvement of the working conditions for doctors. The country could not stop the best among doctors from going abroad without providing them with best of facilities, he said.
MINISTERS BENEFITS BILL: The cabinet earlier voluntarily returned a draft bill regarding the increase in the funds for the refurnishing of ministers’ houses and the rent for private houses for them.
The draft bill was moved for approval by the communication and works department and the gesture shown by the cabinet was appreciated by the chief minister.
Recent newspaper reports regarding the likely enhancement of the fringe benefits had been criticized by people.
PPSC: The meeting was informed that the government had neither withdrawn any post from the recruitment list of the Punjab Public Service Commission nor did it intend to do so.
Earlier, the PPSC chairman presented a report about the functioning and future course of action of the commission.
STATE LAND: The cabinet discussed matter regarding the lease of state land after the chief minister directed to constitute a committee under Law Minister Raja Basharat to review terms for the land already leased out.
