Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Tuesday observed that the court would not tolerate the smuggled stents to be implanted in patients.

He observed that doctors take out stents from their briefcases and plant the same in patients, adding the patients should be made aware regarding the quality of stents as well as duty paid on their import.

Justice Mian Saqib Nisar made these observations while heading a three-judge bench, which took up a case regarding implanting substandard cardiac stents for hearing.

On January 17, the CJP had taken notice of fraud in embedding stents in heart patients on reports that government hospitals in Lahore, including the Cardiology Ward of Mayo Hospital, were either embedding stents in heart patients even when the same were not required or charging patients exorbitantly – up to Rs 180,000 for each stent.

During the course of the hearing, law officer Waqar Rana appeared before the bench and submitted a joint report prepared by the Ministry of National Health Services (MNHS) regulations and coordination secretary and the Drugs Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) chief executive officer.

To resolve the issue pertaining to the use of stents and allied components, he informed the court that a consultative meeting was convened under the chairmanship of the MNHS regulations and coordination secretary with all stakeholders from the public and private sectors on February 3.

He contended that the meetings of the DRAP Registration Board to import cardiac equipment would be conducted with short intervals for consideration of the application of medical devices declared as drugs.

He also informed the top court that the board would ensure quick disposal of pending as well as fresh applications of registration and increase supply of registered products.

He further said that two cardiologists would be taken as observer members to attend the board’s meeting for the agenda of cardiac devices.

The secretary, in consultation with Major General Professor Azher Kiyani, will propose names for the observers, who will provide clinical input. He said that the registration process of such products would be made possible within six months by the DRAP.

He said that a meeting of the DRAP Policy Board would be convened to discuss the policy for pricing mechanism of medical devices, which would subsequently give recommendations for approval of the federal government.

The court hinted that it might halt the insertion of stents until the final determination of prices.

During the hearing, it was also revealed that the authority had registered the stents made by China, while the stents from other countries, including the US, Japan and Germany, were allegedly disregarded.

The drugs/devices, including stents and allied products, if not registered in Pakistan, could be imported by any medical institution for their patients’ use as per the existing practice and ensure supply of all quality products, the report stated.

Chief Justice Nisar observed that international standards should be followed while importing stents. He further observed that the quality of stents could not be determined by a bureaucrat or an admin officer, adding it could only be determined by an expert.The case has been adjourned until the first week of March.