PESHAWAR: The violation of Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms Act, 2015 has surfaced at Khyber Teaching Hospital where authorities have yet to complete the renovation programme worth Rs700 million, establish a pharmacy shop planned in 2015 and appoint institutional employees on top positions, according to documents.

The documents show that two employees draw double salaries for holding two positions at KTH.

Four major positions of hospital director, medical director, dean and finance director are held by civil servants instead of institutional employees in accordance with MTI Act, 2015.

Hospital spokesman says appointments, work carried out in line with law

The secretary of Board of Governors has dual employment at the hospital. He also holds his erstwhile position of stenographer and draws salaries for both positions besides getting other benefits.

According to MTI Act, the hospital should recruit finance director from the market but the post is held by a deputationist, who has completed two tenures. The post was advertised in January 2016 and applications for it were scrutinised one year ago but the post is still vacant.

A person, who was rejected in interview for the post of manager internal audit, was appointed on Rs45000 monthly salary as assistant manager finance without advertisement.

The documents show that president of IT Association was given dual charge through a letter issued on April 10 by the hospital director. He acts as secretary to hospital director in addition to IT job and gets double allowance.

The hospital is yet to complete renovation, repair, beautification and refurbishment programme for which first advertisement for expression of interest for consultancy services was floated in December 2015 and the second one in January 2016 for which four consultants applied but none of them was selected.

A third advertisement was floated in February 2016 and six consultants including MEINHAEDT Pakistan, Wings Consultants, Development Consultancy Services, Shaz Consultants, New Vision Engineering Consultants and Naqvi and Siddiquie Associates applied for it.

The technical committee considered two bidders -- Development Consultancy Services and MEINHAEDT Pakistan. The financial bids were opened and Development Consultant being lowest was selected but it was not given the contract and instead a fourth advertisement was floated in May 2016 and an agreement with M/S Langdon Wilson International was signed in November 2016.

The consultant, was responsible for Phase 1 “assessment and master planning” and phase 2 “design and cost estimate”, PC-1 etc within two months, but he hadn’t done it so far despite several reminders by the administration. Its completion was due on April 17, 2018.

The private rooms at the hospital have not been in use for the last five months for want of renovation. It is causing losses to the hospital. Last year, more than 90 per cent dengue-affected patients were facilitated in private rooms.

A pharmacy store established at a tiny place for the patients visiting consultants at the institution-based practice (IBP) in the evening has been offering 20 to30 per discount.

It was relocated to the hospital’s main gate but the place was later assigned to private consultant free of cost. The same store has earned Rs2 million for hospital during the past two years.

A pharmacy shop, advertised in June 2016, is yet to be established. Now it has again been advertised after two years.

Dr Faisal Sultan, the KTH BoG chairman, neither responded to telephone call nor SMS by this correspondent to seek his version.

Hospital spokesman Farhad Khan, however, categorically denied irregularities in KTH and said that the appointments and development work had been done in line with the law. “We have started evening OPD and improved emergency services after the new law was enforced in 2015,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 2nd, 2018