Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, Abdul Qadir Patel on Thursday inaugurated the state-of-the-art National Autism and Mental Health Centre for autistic children at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS). Addressing the ceremony, the minister said that the government has established this country’s first public sector National Autism and Mental Health Centre for children in the federal capital to serve the patients, who were earlier facing a shortage of such services. He said that this will be the first centre in the country of such high quality. He added that in the first phase, the centre will offer diagnostic and treatment facilities at centre’s out-patients department (OPD). He said that the patients will also avail free medical advises on various aspects of the disease, including diagnostic and treatment management at the centre. He said that an estimated 0.4 million people in the country are Autism patients. He added the major issue in Pakistan is diagnosing of the disease as there are reports of wrong diagnose of the disease. He said that the issues related to the treatment and availability of facilities are also being faced by patients in Pakistan. He added that this is major progress in the health sector as the government is committed to serve the people of Pakistan. He said that the present government was focusing on its health reform agenda to make a positive change in the health sector and improving the standard of the health service delivery system. NA body recommends to fill PIMS vacant posts on contract basis: National Assembly Standing Committee on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination on Thursday recommended the federal government to recruit paramedical staff, doctors, nurses, and other medical staff for vacant positions at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on a contractual basis. The committee meeting which was chaired by its chairperson, Dr. Muhammad Afzal Dhandla, directed the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination to fill these vacancies immediately on a short-term basis. He said that at least a three-year contractual period should be announced for all pending seats to serve the patients and improve the efficiency of the hospital. The committee also recommended to ask the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) to provide a subsidy on the electricity bills of PIMS and Federal Government Polyclinic hospital. The committee was informed that the PIMS hospital has been facing a shortage of 1,114 posts including doctors, nurses, and other medical staff for the last 15 years. It was further informed that in order to enhance the performance of the hospital there is an immediate need to fill these posts. Earlier, the committee members visited the different departments of the PIMS including the Cardiac center, Mother and Child care ward, and OPD, and inspected the health facilities being provided to the visitors. In a briefing, Dr. Rizwan Taj, Dean of PIMS informed the committee members about the PIMS’s performance and the creation of new research and training center for improving the communication skills of paramedical staff in order to serve the patients in a friendly environment at the hospital. Dr Muhammad Afzal Dhandla acknowledged the PIMS administration for innovative steps being taken by the hospital and said that this will help to facilitate the provision of basic healthcare services and a good friendly environment for patients. PIMS Director Dr Khalid Masood informed the committee that 1,350 beds have been allocated at the hospital to facilitate the patients. He added, “Despite the shortage of beds due to the critical situation of the dengue outbreak, the hospital administration is ensuring the allocation of further beds for incoming patients.”