QUETTA: The Trauma and Emergency Centre of Civil Hospital Quetta has been declared an independent and autonomous institution in view of observations of the judicial commission formed to investigate the last year’s deadly attack outside the hospital.

The Balochistan’s health department announced on Saturday that a notification in this regard had been issued.

The provincial government formed the judicial commission after the killing of Bilal Anwar Kasi, president of Balochistan Bar Association, in a gun attack and the subsequent suicide bombing outside the Quetta’s Civil Hospital in which 70 people, mostly lawyers, were killed on Aug 8 last year.

According to the notification, Dr Fahim Khan has been appointed managing director of the trauma centre and senior surgeon Dr Azimulah Babar director medical services.

It said seven new administrative officers, 14 surgeons, five neurosurgeons and five specialists of skin diseases would be appointed for the centre.

It has been decided that in case of an emergency, doctors at all public sector hospitals in Quetta would ensure their availability to the trauma centre within 30 minutes on the call of its managing director or director medical services.

The notification said all staff members would have to report the managing director on a daily basis.

Meanwhile, there are calls from some quarters that there should be a ban on doctors posted at the trauma centre from doing private practice.

Published in Dawn, July 24th, 2017