LAHORE: The Punjab Healthcare Commission (PHC) has initiated action against another leader of the Young Doctors Association (YDA) on charges of doing ‘illegal/unauthorised’ clinical practice and for ‘promoting’ quackery.

The action was recommended against postgraduate trainee of the Jinnah Hospital Lahore Dr Mohammad Rameez during an inspection carried out by the officials of the health department, including a drug inspector, at his clinic at Arifwala where he was reportedly doing unauthorised clinical practice.

The raid was carried out by the team under the supervision of the Arifwala (Pakpattan) deputy district officer health (DDOH) at the Amin Medical Centre that was housing a pharmacy, two-bed ward and a doctor’s office.

The young medic was a senior representative of the Jinnah Hospital Lahore Chapter of the YDA.

Earlier, another senior office-bearer of the YDA Punjab Dr Altamash was also arrested by a team of the Federal Investigation Agency and the Human Organ Transplant Authority during a raid at his residence in Lahore where a team of medics was doing illegal kidney transplant a couple of years back.

In the fresh case, the DDOH forwarded his report to the Pakpattan chief executive officer, saying that during inspection the team caught Dr Rameez when he was doing practice as an urologist (consultant) while he was registered as PGR.

He stated that the team sealed the Amin Medical Centre as it was neither housing any operation theatre nor having drug sale licence which was a sheer violation of the Drug Act 1976.

The reporting officer has recommended action against the medical centre to the District Quality Control Board (Pakpattan) for further proceeding against the owner.

Similarly, the case has also been recommended to the commission for action against Dr Rameez under the PHC Act 2010.

“Dr Rameez was deceiving public at large by showing fake qualification on his laboratory pad and on clinic’s premises that is violation of the PMDC Ordinance 1962 and the PHCC Act 2010,” reads the report of the DDOH.

The report further stated that Dr Rameez who is PG trainee of Jinnah Hospital Lahore didn’t hold any postgraduate qualification nor registered as specialist with PMDC or PHCC.

“Under the provisions of terms and conditions of the PG policy, a [PG] trainee is not authorised to do any private practice,” reads the DDOH report.

He recommended action against Dr Rameez while making it confirmed that he was doing unauthorised practice at Arifwala tehsil.

“In view of the above, it is requested that immediate action may be taken against Dr Mohammad Rameez PGR trainee of Jinnah Hospital Lahore,” reads the report.

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2020