ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has announced the results of the National Examination Board (NEB) examinations taken by Pakistani nationals who completed their basic medical qualifications abroad.

Supervised by the Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University, the exam was conducted in three portions. The first portion, or step one, was held on June 2 and of 2,122 students who sat for the exam, 205 passed. In step two, on June 3, a total of 772 candidates appeared from the exam, of which 299 were declared successful. In step three, 453 candidates appeared for the exam, of which 415 passed.

In the past, the NEB examination has been controversial, and one student allegedly committed suicide after failing to pass the exam. However, the student’s father alleged that his son paid Rs1.8 million as a bribe to pass the exam, but the management demanded more money and then poisoned the student.

According to a statement issued by the council, the exam was patient-based and each candidate was practically assessed at 15 stations. Each candidate was given 10 minutes to check the patient.

The faculty of 12 medical colleges, consisting of professors, associate professors and assistant professors assessed candidates as examiners. The candidates who passed the exam will be registered with the council as doctors after getting notified by the Ministry of National Health Services (NHS).

The PMDC’s executive committee supervised the exam to ensure transparency during the process. The committee includes Prof Dr Abid Farooqi, Prof Gen Khaliq Naveed, Dr Amir Hussain, Prof Dr Ejaz Hassan Khan, Dr Khayalul Rehman Afridi, Dr Mussarat Hussain, Dr Taj Mohammad, acting PMDC registrar Dr Syed Azhar Ali Shah and Dr A.Q. Javed from the NHS ministry.

Committee member Dr Amir Hussain told the media that the council succeeded in holding a transparent examination, and over 91pc of candidates passed in step three. He called the result a huge success on the part of the PMDC. He said NHS Minister Saira Afzal Tarar had ensured her full support and extended her assistance to eradicate any kind of corruption in the examination process.

Dr Khayalul Rehman said the council aimed to eradicate corruption from the roots of the PMDC, which is why all the council members are on board to monitor the NEB’s system to ensure fairness and transparency.

Dr Azhar Ali Shah said examiners were called in from all over Pakistan to ensure transparency.

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2016