The Punjab Healthcare Commission gave a briefing about background, mandate, jurisdiction, regulatory functions, processes, and quality assurance activities of the Commission to a 35-member delegation, comprising faculty members and under-training officers of the Armed Forces Post Graduate Medical Institute (AFPGMI).
According to the PHC spokesperson on Thursday, Chief Executive Officer PHC Dr Muhammad Saqib Aziz gave the briefing to the participants of the MSc Medical Administration Course.
The CEO underlined the need for mutual learning, sharing of knowledge and experience in the fields of clinical governance, quality assurance, capacity assessment of the health managers and practitioners, and capacity-building in the healthcare service delivery, including regular training sessions, training, research and development.
The delegation was told that the PHC was committed to working continuously for patient safety and equivalently-available better treatment facilities across the province. The visible absence of the regulatory frameworks was pointed out as nothing was structured for regulating the healthcare service delivery before the inception of the Commission, which was institutionalised in the province of Punjab for the first time to bring all the healthcare establishments (HCEs) under the ambit of rules and regulations.
It was mentioned that the PHC had been recognised and appreciated internationally, while other provinces are following and replicating it as a successful model. The visitors were also told about the PHC’s initiatives in quality assurance, minimum service delivery standards (MSDS), licensing and accreditation, complaint management and anti-quackery.
It was said that the HCEs, being run by qualified physicians, were being registered and licensed, and these must implement the MSDS, and other regulations and directions. And in case of violation, fines are imposed on the violating HCEs, besides taking other legal actions. The meeting was also apprised about various steps being taken in collaboration with the University of the Health Sciences, Pakistan Medical Commission, Higher Education Commission and other such organisations for incorporating MSDS modules in the curriculum of undergraduate and post-graduate courses for improving the healthcare regulatory framework, quality in healthcare and patient safety.
It was also indicated that the PHC had investigated over 2200 applications regarding medical negligence. Regarding quackery, it was pointed out that the commission had taken action against more than 125,500 treatment centres, and sealed 36,549 quacks’ centres, while around 29,400 quacks had quit their illegal businesses.
In his concluding remarks, Lieutenant Colonel Yahya Masood thanked the PHC senior management for holding the briefing, and said the commission was doing good work, which was being appreciated.
PHC’s directors Clinical Governance Dr Mushtaq Ahmed Salariya, Licence and Accreditation Dr Muhammad Anwar Janjua, and Complaints Dr Syed Shamoon Masood were also present on the occasion.
The AFPGMI delegation was led by Commandant of the Institute Major General Zaheer Akhter.