PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa health department is strengthening primary and secondary care facilities to provide speedy care to the critically-ill and injured people at local hospitals and ease load on the tertiary care facilities in the provincial capital, claim officials.

“The government has agreed to give the health department more than Rs3 billion to provide equipment to basic health units, rural health centres and other district level facilities for the provision of all necessary services to the people in their own areas,” said a senior official, who participated in a meeting chaired by health secretary Abid Majeed here on Saturday.

The meeting attended by district health officers, medical superintendents and technical experts of the health department reviewed a list of the sought-after appliances aiming to strengthen intensive care units, labour rooms, accident and emergency department, orthopedic wards besides putting in place effective waste management system and infection control measures and laundry sections, the official said.

The participants presented the lists of articles prepared during the last few months to ensure that the local facilities provide primary and secondary care and thus, guaranteeing that the people don’t visit city’s hospitals and find investigative and treatment services in their own areas.

The meeting was told that Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and chief secretary Mohammad Azam Khan had approved the plan and the department would get the funds soon.

The officials said the provision of the requested equipment to the hospitals will be provided subject to availability of electricity, qualified staff and that the facility didn’t have such equipment already.

They said there are more than 700 types of equipment to be purchased within two months.

The officials said the province wouldn’t be required to float tenders as there had already been a ‘rate contract’ under which the relevant committees would procure equipment.

“If a facility has equipment in working condition, they will be shifted to another hospital. There will be no duplication,” an official said about a decision of the meeting.

According to him, under the plan, the facilities will get equipment ranging from stethoscope to CT and MRI scanners as well as would be allowed to use solar power and generators to ensure smooth power supply for effective patient care.

The plan will also reduce out-of-pocket expenses by patients and the time lost due to relatives, who often stayed with patients in hospitals.

Through another initiative, the health department is undertaking an exercise to establish bathrooms, waiting areas and chairs for patients wherever needed.

“In the last one year, we have recruited over 5,000 doctors for which the provision of equipment is required to ensure that the patients take benefit of the presence of medics,” he said.

The officials said the health department also procured dental equipment as the government had appointed dental surgeons to rural hospitals but their benefits didn’t trickle down due to the shortage of equipment.

They said there should be a proper monitoring system to ensure that the equipment are fully utilised for patient care.

The officials said the new equipment would be purchased under a new criteria developed recently by the health department, which allowed the procurement of items from the manufacturers directly.

They said prior to the new mechanism, the hospitals purchased low-quality materials from the suppliers, who imported Chinese stuff in the name of Japanese one reaching here via Dubai. “Now, the manufacturers make direct supply with warranty and arrangements for maintenance and repairs. The health department has 1,576 health facilities in the province, where around 60,000 employees, including doctors, paramedics and nurses, work but the shortage of equipment is a chronic problem prompting patients to visit Peshawar. The new system will enable the people to get proper care on their doorstep,” he said.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2017