BOTH bodies representing the doctors’ community and political parties are vocal on the dissolution of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council by the federal government.

Based on the pattern of the General Medical Council in UK, the PMDC has seen many changes, including extra large numbers of council members representing almost all private and government teaching institutions and general practitioners.

Looking at its performance compared to GMC, the opening statement for the former is to protect patients to upkeep the standard of medical education and govern the ethical practice of registered doctors.

It appears that the democratically elected council failed in all the above criteria. The number of complaints about willful or otherwise negligence by the doctors’ community has often led to many ugly situations and violence at various hospitals.

Many medical colleges which did not comply with the minimum requirements for good medical education were refused altogether while others having all the necessary requirements were denied registration, for reasons best known to its council members.

Registration of newly qualified doctors and others was a difficult without a source or graft.

Currently the Council of GMC consists of 34 members — 50pc lay persons and 50pc from registered doctors, all nominated by the privy council. Experience made them drop the idea of electing members. Revalidation of registered doctors at regular interval, as in the US is a must. There is no issue of time scale promotion, despite the fact that the National Health Service is run by the government. The universities are autonomous and appoint their own teaching staff on merit.

Decisions about the patients are made in in Pakistan by a group of young doctors who are more concerned about ‘self’ than patients. So are politicians who provide them protection and mislead them.

It is time to say: good riddance, PMDC!

An Onlooker

Karachi

Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2019