Daily Times

Minister for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Dr. Jamal Nasir on Wednesday informed that hurdles in overseas employment of nurses had been removed. In a statement issued here, the minister said that on direction of Punjab Caretaker Chief Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi, the Primary and Secondary Healthcare department had also decided to process the applications of the nurses for ex-Pakistan leave on urgent basis. He observed that on return of these nurses from abroad, the local patients and hospitals would be able to benefit from their experience, adding that the foreign remittances sent by the nurses during their employment would also be a service for national cause as Pakistan was in need for precious foreign exchange.

The Minister revealed that the Primary and Secondary Healthcare department had issued detailed guidelines to facilitate the nurses including Charge Nurse, Head Nurse or any other equivalent designation from BS-16 to BS-19 for ex-Pakistan leaves for the purposes of overseas employment. He said that the applicant must be a regular nurse as these guidelines would not be applicable on nurses working on contract or ad-hoc bases. The applicant should have a valid employment offer letter from the health facility abroad, he added. He said that in case the visa had been obtained, it might be attached with the leave application so that the process could be expedited. The minister said that in case the applicant was unable to provide the leave title duly approved by District Accounts Office, the leave application might be processed subject to leave title and no means would be used to delay sanctioning of leave application. The applications might be directly submitted at the facilitation center, HISDU and would be decided within a period of four working days from the date of submission, the minister cleared.

He said that the forwarding of application from immediate head of the institution where nurse was serving would not be required. He directed the Deputy Secretary concerned to daily review the pendency of such applications. Similarly, substitute might be provided to such health facility later stage and by no means would this be a reason to delay sanctioning of leave, he said. In case if any applicant was under PEEDA ACT, 2006, it would be examined and processed on ease to case basis keeping in view gravity of charges as per the guidelines, he concluded.