PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has appointed another member of the ruling PTI’s Insaf Doctors’ Forum as its focal person for healthcare in the province.

Last March, health minister Syed Qasim Ali Shah made provincial IDF president Dr Nabi Jan Afridi as his focal person for affairs of public sector health employees.

Now, Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur has appointed IDF central president Dr Mudir Khan as his focal person on health matters.

For the first time, serving doctors belonging to the ruling party have been assigned the roles in the government directly.

Dr Mudir insists he will ensure streamlining of health affairs

Both the doctors are actively practicing in their fields, with Dr Mudir working as an orthopaedic surgeon and assistant professor at the Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar and Dr Nabi serving in the anesthesia department at the Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar.

Dr Mudir is the founder of the IDF.

On March 26, the government notified PTI MNA Dr Amjad Ali Khan as the CM’s focal person to look after health projects in the province.

Dr Amjad, a former president of the Young Doctors’ Association, is a full-time politician now.

He has many projects, including the Institutes of Liver and Bone Marrow Transplants, to start these health services for the first time in the province on the directives of the CM.

The latest government notification read, “In order to facilitate and assist Dr Amjad Ali Khan, focal person to the chief minister on health sector

and ensure effective coordination of health related activities in the province, the chief minister has been pleased to nominate Dr Mudir Khan, president IDF Pakistan and assistant professor orthopedics LRH, as co-focal Person on Health Sector with immediate effect.”

It added that the services of Dr Mudir would be utilised without payment of remuneration or compensation.

Now, the health sector in the province is overseen by a team of four individuals comprising health minister Qasim Shah, his focal person Dr Nabi, and two focal persons to the chief minister Dr Amjad and Dr Mudir.

They’re collectively responsible for managing the healthcare affairs in the province.

Sources in the health department told Dawn that the PTI government had appointed both IDF leaders to “stay safe from their pressure regarding the affairs of the health department.”

They said instead of listening to the IDF’s demands regarding improvements in the health sector, the government tasked the forum’s top leaders with helping it bring improvement in the health sector.

The sources said unlike other political parties, which also had doctors’ wings, the IDF of the PTI was “very strong” as its leaders had direct access to the party’s leadership, including founder and former prime minister Imran Khan.

They insisted that the IDF leaders’ appointment as focal persons to the CM and health minister would save the government from listening to them now and then.

The sources said the IDF had been playing a key role in the implementation of the Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms Act in the province.

When contacted, Dr Mudir said that he had offered his services to help the government streamline health affairs in the province.

“I will continue serving in the Lady Reading Hospital,” he said, adding that the new assignment of working as the CM’s focal person is honorary.

Dr Mudir said there was a need for developing more trauma centres in the province.

“We have a 300-bed accident and emergency department in the LRH, while other public sector hospitals don’t have this specialty,” he said.

The focal person also said Dr Nabi Jan Afridi performed his duty at the KTH and attended meetings with the minister and officials as the minister’s focal person about the problems of health employees.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2024