RAWALPINDI: The Punjab government has launched a training programme for healthcare professionals of district and tehsil-level hospitals in Rawalpindi division to enhance their skill and capacity in order to manage complicated patients at periphery-level hospital rather than referring them to Rawalpindi hospitals.

Rawalpindi Medical University (RMU) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mohammad Umar told Dawn that the university would supervise this programme.

“This is a unique model which links the primary healthcare facilities with tertiary care teaching hospitals and will ultimately lessen the burden on three main hospitals in the garrison city,” he said.

Dr Umar said as part of training the RMU would provide human resource to supervise complicated surgeries and other operations performed by doctors of district and tehsil headquarters hospitals of Mianwali, Chakwal and Attock districts.

Exercise aims to lessen burden on three main hospitals in garrison city

“The training will increase their skill and capacity to manage more patients at periphery-level hospital rather than referring them to Rawalpindi hospitals,” he said.

“This will help the local population to get treatment and surgeries at their doorstep. It will also reduce the burden on RMU-allied hospitals which are already short of beds to accommodate patients,” he said.

Moreover, the vice chancellor said by this model, the RMU would train specialists at DHQ and THQ hospitals through telemedicine as well as face-to-face sessions at RMU.

“This will enhance their capacity to manage complicated patients in their own hospitals,” he said.

This model will start university residency programme at DHQ hospitals.

The specialists at these hospitals will complete their essential workshops at RMU and will be certified supervisors or co-supervisors as per requirement of the university.

The postgraduate trainees will be rotated in DHQ hospitals after their initial training period in RMU-allied hospitals. During this rotation trainees will have the experience of treating community-based health issues.

RMU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mohammad Umar and team comprising Prof Dr Lubna (gynaecology), Prof Dr Rai Asghar (pediatrics), Prof Dr Naveed Malik (surgery), Prof Bushra (medicine), and many others visited DHQ Hospital Mianwali, THQ Hospital Kalabagh, THQ Hospital Isa Khel, THQ Hospital Kallar Kahar and RHC Dullah and did the situational analysis of these healthcare facilities.

According to the RMU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mohammad Umar, the team prepared a plan to hold extended medical camp in these hospitals.

RMU team comprising doctors of all specialities held camps at RHC Dullah and THQ Hospital Kalabagh.

In these two camps, thousands of patients were treated and patients were referred to RMU-allied hospitals for surgeries and other relevant treatment not available in THQ hospitals.

“This programme is well perceived by health professionals as well as the general public at large. A link has been developed between radiology, nephrology and surgery departments of RMU and Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) Hospital Kallar Kahar.

It has improved on-line system of CT scan and other imaging diagnostics. This linkage will be further extended to other THQ hospitals and district headquarters hospitals of Mianwali,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2022