Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting, Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan Sunday said the incumbent government will revamp the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) as a part of its health reform agenda, bringing it on a par with the international regulatory agencies.
Addressing the 10th International Medical Conference 2019, organized by Medics International, the special assistant said Prime Minister Imran Khan is committed for the surgery of deteriorated health system of the country and heading toward bringing health reforms through public private partnership. The role of DRAP in ensuring access of safe and quality medicines to the citizens on affordable prices is of prime importance and the incumbent government is transforming this authority on modern lines, she said. Pakistan being an Islamic Welfare state is responsible to provide quality medical facilities to its citizens, she said. However, poor patients being unable to get proper health care gave up their lives at the doors of the public hospitals which is quite painful, she lamented.
She said 90 percent doctors in the public hospitals are devoted to their cause, however 10 percent are exploiting the poor patients. “Those doctors who studied medical from private colleges mostly belonged to the feudal families who just enter this field to maintain their status, having no association with the noble cause behind this profession,” she said.
She continued that majority of these doctors employed in public hospitals wanted return of the huge investment their parents did on them through protesting on roads and forgetting the ultimate human cause of their profession.
The special assistant said Imran Khan is a social worker and his political career is deeply attached to the cause of humanity. He established Shaukat Khanam Cancer Hospital for serving the poor segments of the society.
Imran Khan entered the parliament through making the impossible possible and challenged the status quo thus overcoming all the resistance caused by his opponents.
“If your leadership is committed to a cause then success is your destination”, she added.
Referring to the health challenges of infant and mother mortality rate, growing hepatitis, stunting growth etc. being faced by the citizens, Firdous Ashiq Awan reiterated the government’s commitment to provide all out support for restructuring the entire health system.
“The policy makers have to be hand in glove with implementers to accomplish this task”, she commented.
She said, `prevention is better than cure’ and awareness about communicable and non-communicable diseases is indispensable for prevention of diseases.
“Adequate information about diseases should be part of academic syllabus”, she stressed.
The government is ready to restructure the old health system and introduce technological transformations, effective management system and merit-based hiring and promotions system through public-private partnership.
The private organisations and overseas doctors would be provided conducive working environment to protect lives of poor suffering from the chronic diseases and such collaborations would be imperative to effectively implement the new health reforms across the country.
Speaking on the occasion, MI’s Founder, Dr Wajih Rizvi said MI has carried out massive health care-based relief work within the country especially when the country faced a major natural calamity including earthquakes and floods in the recent past years.
He said this was the first ever international conference organized by MI in Pakistan with an aim to provide guidance to the students of Pakistani medical colleges regarding their goal to pursue more specialized education to become expert physicians and dentists in different fields of medicine.
Speakers including Professor Mulazim Bukhari, President MI Pakistan, Dr. Zulfiqar Kazmi, Scholar, Arshad Qayyumi, Cardiologist USA, Dr. Dilbar Saeed, Dr Wajih Rizvi, Founder Medics International, Dr Huma Naqvi, Global President, Medics International also addressed on the occasion.
