ISLAMABAD: Six doctors of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) have been given administrative charge of the hospital.

The charge was handed to the doctors by the hospital’s board of governors (BoGs).

According to a notification, available with Dawn, Dr Mutahir Shah has been appointed director of the out patient department (OPD) with additional charge of institutional based practice (IBP).

Dr Hafeez A Memon has been given additional charge of Isolation Hospital and Infectious Treatment Centre (IHITC) located in Chak Shahzad. Dr Nasreen Butt has been appointed as the casualty medical officer. Dr Zofishan Jabeen has been appointed as director of the Mother and Child Hospital (MCH) and the media coordinator. Dr Rabia Baloch has been appointed as director of the Children Hospital and assistant media coordinator. Dr Naveed A Sheikh has been appointed as deputy director (evening) of all departments of Pims.

It is worth mentioning that during November 2020, President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi had promulgated the Medical Teaching Institution (MTI) Ordinance. According to the initial draft, the board of governors (BoG) would deal with all affairs of Pims once it became an MTI and members would be appointed and notified by the Ministry of National Health Services on the recommendation of a search and nomination council. The BoG has overall superintendence and control over functions of the hospital. It has power to appoint deans, the hospital director, medical director, nursing director and finance director.

The staff of Pims protested against the ordinance and on June 28, 2021, the Senate Standing Committee on NHS rejected the bill as two votes were in favour of it and five were against it. Later, it could not sail through the upper house and lapsed on July 13, last year. The government managed to pass the bill through a joint session.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2022