ISLAMABAD: Four public-sector hospitals in the federal capital spent Rs5 billion in less than six months, documents submitted to the National Assembly (NA) revealed.

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MNA Naveed Aamir Jeeva had asked the Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) to share total amount spent on each government hospital in Islamabad during the tenure of the present government.

The reply submitted by Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel stated that the incumbent government took over on April 11, 2022. It said from April to June this year, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) spent Rs1.16 billion and the Federal Medical Teaching Institute (FMTI) Rs1.73 billion from June to October.

The Federal Government Polyclinic Hospital (FGPH) spent an amount of Rs1.46 billion from April 2022 till now while the National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine (NIRM) spent Rs230 million from June 1 to October 31. Similarly, the Federal General Hospital (FGH) spent Rs123 million during the period.

Plot allotted in G-13 for extension of Polyclinic on IHC’s direction, health ministry says

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) legislator Sheikh Rohale Asghar had asked if it was true that the extension plan of Federal Government Polyclinic Islamabad had been dropped.

The health ministry informed the house that it had got a separate plot from the Capital Development Authority (CDA) in G-11/3 for the extension of FGPH. The plan to extend the hospital into the adjacent Argentina Park was cancelled by Islamabad High Court in May 2019. The court also directed the CDA to provide an alternative land for the extension of the hospital.

The ministry added that a plot had been allotted for the project, “Jinnah Hospital (ex-name Federal Government Polyclinic-II), at G-11/3 and Rs9.91 billion would be spent on it. The project would be completed in three years.

Another PML-N legislator, Tahira Aurangzeb, had asked whether the provision of facility of angiography/angioplasty and heart surgery at Federal Government Polyclinic and General Hospital, Chak Shahzad, was available.

Mr Patel, in a written reply, informed the house that cardiac interventional surgery was not available at the hospital and only conservative management was undertaken there.

“The hospital refers such patients for angiography/angioplasty and heart surgery to Pims, AFIC and other hospitals,” he stated.

Replying to a question raised by PPP legislator Nasiba Channa, the health ministry stated that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (Drap) continued to work closely with manufacturers and importers to mitigate and prevent shortages of life-saving drugs.

“Through a proactive approach and the use of all tools, including regulatory flexibilities, Drap aims to shorten the duration of the shortage and ultimately prevent it while adhering to the sacred responsibility of ensuring safe, efficacious, quality and affordable therapeutic goods to the people of Pakistan. The shortage of drugs is a dynamic process which involves supply chain disruption, quality defects, cost escalation, regulatory actions, discontinuation, quota allocation, etc. A committee constituted by Drap has been assigned with the responsibility to monitor shortages of drugs in the market,” the ministry stated.

Replying to PPP legislator Sikandar Ali Rahoupoto’s question about the number of dialysis machines presently available at FGPH and the average number of patients benefiting daily, the health ministry said no such setup existed in the hospital.

Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2022