PMC Approves New Medical and Dental Academic Board
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The National Medical Newspaper Pakistans First Independent Medical Periodical from Karachi Vol. 52 No. 15 January 15-31, 2020 Published Fortnightly Reg. No. ID. MC-153 ISSN 1728-1520 Controlled Circulation Sindh Hospitals Mental Health Crises: Alternative Medicine: DRAP: SHC green Inside facing funds ... 02 Pakistanis rate ... 05 5th Hamdard Int'l ... 06 signals the drug ... 10 PMC approves NHS cuts the prices of new Medical 89 medicines by 15% and Dental MN Report ISLAMABAD - A notification was recently issued by the Ministry of Academic Board National Health Services (NHS) stating that the prices of 89 essential MN Report Pakistan Medical and Dental Tariq as the member of the medicines have been reduced by ISLAMABAD - According to a Council and establishing the board. Principal of the Army 15pc. The ministry announced that recent notification, the Ministry PMC. Medical College would also be the reduced prices had come to of National Health Services The notification stated that four a member of the board. force with immediate effect. (NHS) had constituted an 18- members of the board from Dr Amir Bilal of Lady Reading While addressing to the media in member National Medical and public sector medical universities Hospital, Peshawar, Dr Saeed Dental Academic Board were required to be nominated Sadiq Hamid of Aga Khan (NMDAB). The board would look by the provinces. Punjab has University, Karachi, and Dr Arif into the standard of education nominated Vice Chancellor of Tajammul of Allama Iqbal being followed by the Fatima Jinnah Medical Medical College, Lahore, had undergraduate/post-graduate University, Prof Dr Aamer Zaman been nominated members of the medical and dental institutions Khan as the member board from public or private 15% across the country. The representing the province, while medical colleges. notification was signed by NHS nominations from other Prof Dr Tahir Aziz Ahmed of this regard, Special Assistant to secretary Dr Allah Bakhsh Malik, provinces were still awaited. Shifa International Hospital, Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar members of the board include Similarly, the provinces had to Islamabad, and Dr Khalid Mirza told that the federal cabinet the chairman of Higher nominate one each member Mehmood of King Edward had decided to decrease the prices Education Commission (HEC) from private medical universities Medical University, Lahore, had of the 89 medicines in line with the and vice president of College of or colleges. So far Punjab had also been nominated as Pricing Policy of 2018. Under the Physicians and Surgeons of nominated Principal of Shalimar members of the board. policy, prices of innovator drugs Pakistan. Medical and Dental College, Two dentists, Dr Saqib Riaz Qazi have to be decreased by 10pc three It is pertinent to mention here Lahore, Dr Zahid Bashir. Khyber and Prof Dr Syed Muhammad years after their launch in the that President Dr Arif Alvi had Pakhtunkhwa had nominated Kefi Iqbal, had also been market. However, considering all earlier promulgated an Dean of Northwest School of included in the board as its the aspects it was decided to ordinance dissolving the Medicine Prof Dr Muhammad members. Continued on Page 08 Saaf Doodh, Sehat Mehfooz: PMA Founder: Ayaz Mahmood puts spotlight on adulterated milk Publisher: M Hassan Mahmood Chief Executive: Syed Hashim Hasan MN Report unavailability of /MedicalNewsPk KARACHI - The Pakistan Medical Association healthcare Online Editor: Haseeb Uddin /MedicalNewsPk (PMA) recently held a press conference where providers, and Assistant Editor: Dr Muattar Hanif they announced to run a campaign for the the plight of the poor masses. Honorary Advisor: availability of clean milk. The event was attended "In 2020, we have decided to run public awareness Dr Sulman Akhtur by Dr S M Qaisar Sajjad, Secretary-General, PMA campaigns regarding health-related issues. We Manager Production Centre, Dr Qazi Muhammad Wasiq, Treasurer, are going to start a campaign called 'Saaf Doodh, & Coordination: M Irfan Ali medicalnewspk.com PMA, Dr S Tipu Sultan, Ex-President, PMA, Dr Sehat Mehfooz' (Clean Milk, Healthy Life) for Advertising Manager Tel: 021-35833172 SM Shakil (0300-2559344) Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, General-Secretary, PMA clean milk," they stated. 021-35872289 Business Executives Karachi, and Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, Ex- Secretary- The PMA officials said that 90% of our population Khawaja Akhlaq Ahmed General, PMA. was consuming open milk from the retailers, (0342-2393917) Haroon Rashid PMA leaders, while addressing to the press whereas only about 10% of people use packaged (Islamabad: 0300-9710774) conference, expressed their concerns regarding milk. They believed that the open milk available Designing & Layout Sh M Sadiq Ali healthcare as well as the burden of diseases, the Continued on Page 08 Sindh Hospitals facing Paramedical funds shortage, place staff protest as they step further strain on Patients up calls for MN Report were not being performed for the facing a similar situation, KARACHI - According to past several weeks. At present, The Government hospitals of reforms sources, the Sindh Health only CBC, ESR, Urea Creatinine, Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur, Department failed to supply LFT, RBS, FBS, and a few other Mirpurkhas, Shaheed MN Report some diagnostic kits and basic tests were being done in Benazirabad, and other cities KARACHI - The paramedical chemicals used in were also facing a staff under the banner of laboratories to diagnose shortage of detection kits Paramedical Staff Joint Action diseases, putting poor to diagnose chronic Committee, had continued their patients in grave trouble. diseases. protest demonstration and sit- The largest teaching Patients were being in outside the Karachi Press institution of Sindh, the referred to private labs Club for the regularization of Dr Ruth Pfau Civil for diagnostic tests. A Gavi-vaccinators, restoration of Hospital Karachi (CHK), large number of people paramedical staff service has been facing an acute were visiting the CHK structure, cancellation of shortage of funds, and and other hospitals for recovery letter, and approval of the hospital's diagnostic facilities each 30% of the health professional administration has been unable the CHK lab. day, where the kits were not allowance summary. to conduct major tests due to the The National Institute of Child available. unavailability of these detection Health, Jinnah Postgraduate When contacted, Medical kits and chemicals. Medical Centre (JPMC), Sindh Superintendent, CHK, Dr Khadim Sources at the Central Government Lyari General Hussain Qureshi, said a tender Laboratory of the CHK noted that Hospital, Sindh Government has already been issued to only 15 basic tests were now Hospital Liaquatabad, Sindh purchase the necessary kits and being performed out of 147 tests. Government Hospital New chemicals used in the lab. He Major tests like PCR Karachi, Sindh Government informed that the situation was (Polymerase Chain Reaction), Qatar Hospital Orangi, and other expected to improve within the thyroid profile, B-12 and others government hospitals were also next two weeks. had to carry a polio vaccination certificate. PMA finds The PMA said that they had already warned the government to pay full attention to the polio program. The failure points weakening of the program could result Later, the protesting paramedics in us face more traveling restrictions. tried to march towards the Chief "Unfortunately, our fears turned Minister Sindh House twice, but in Polio out to be true," said PMA. law enforcement agencies foiled pertinent to mention here that their attempts at entering the Eradication the United States recently red zone. The paramedical staff generated a Level 2 travel wanted to stage a protest in alert for Pakistan and other favor of their demands. The Program polio-endemic Asian paramedical staff of Sindh had countries following the also been observing a two-hour outbreak of the crippling token strike and boycott of duties MN Report disease, declaring the life- for ten days for the approval of KARACHI - The Pakistan Medical time booster dose for adults their demands. Association (PMA), recently released a mandatory during the period of Earlier, the second session of statement, noting that polio program has restrictions imposed by the World negotiation between the deteriorated in the country, despite carrying out Health Organization (WHO). The alert representatives of paramedics over 100 rounds of vaccinations in the past decade. had been generated on the recommendations of and the Sindh Health The report noted that in 2018, with only 12 cases the US Federal Agency's Center for Disease Control Department was held at the detected all year, the polio program seemed to be and Prevention (CDC) to stop the spread of the Sindh Secretariat, but on the brink of eradicating the poliovirus. In contrast, virus to other states. The World Health Organization paramedics refused to accept in 2019, as many as 135 cases were reported from recommended that such countries required its any proposal of the Health across the country. The provincial data for 2019 residents and long-term (four weeks or more) Department without the issuance showed that 91 polio cases were reported from visitors to show proof of polio vaccination before of notification. KP, 25 from Sindh, 11 from Baluchistan, and eight leaving the country. Notably, the WHO extended The central leadership of the from Punjab. travel restrictions on Pakistanis following the recent Paramedical Staff Joint Action Unfortunately, the International Monitoring Board outbreaks of vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 Committee Sindh gave two days (IMB) had declared the polio program and the (cVDPV2) and wild polio-virus type 1 (WP1) cases. to the Sindh Health Department importance of delivering the polio vaccine as a The PMA had been expressing and guiding the to accept the demands of the "political football" in the country. It also observed government to work with all stakeholders, political technical and support staff; that there was a lack of political unity behind polio parties, and religious leaders to eliminate polio otherwise, a complete strike resurgence in the country, said the PMA.