F.P. Report
PESHAWAR: A meeting of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Healthcare Commission and Directorate of Drug Control & Pharmacy Services was held here on Wednesday with Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Khan Gandapur in the chair to review the performance, objectives, challenges, and future strategies of the above mentioned subordinate offices of the health department. The meeting was attended by Advisor to CM on Health, Ihtisham Ali, Health Secretary Adeel Shah, Director General Health Services Dr. Muhammad Saleem, Director General Drug Control Dr. Abbas, and CEO Healthcare Commission Dr. Nadeem.
The Chief Minister directed the Healthcare Commission to devise and implement a comprehensive plan to improve the quality of healthcare facilities across the province. He emphasized conducting clinical and surgical audits of healthcare centers, registering unregistered facilities, and working on a timeline-based plan with regular progress reviews.
He also instructed the commission to address staff shortages by hiring necessary personnel and taking strict action against facilities providing substandard medical services. The Directorate of Drug Control was directed to establish at least one mobile drug testing laboratory at each divisional headquarters and fill vacant positions of pharmacists in all government hospitals.
During the meeting, CEO Healthcare Commission briefed participants about the overall performance of authority and informed that over 18,911 healthcare centers have been registered, with an online portal introduced for an easier registration process. Geo-tagging of 38,443 centers has been completed, and assessments of 159 centers for licensing are underway. It was told that in the last 2.5 years, 10,085 inspections were conducted, notices were issued to 2,606 facilities, and 2,062 were sealed due to violations, whereas of 2839 complaints out of 3006 received were resolved during the period.
It was further told that actions were initiated against 1,523 cases of quackery, resulting in fines for 1,189 facilities and the sealing of 763 centers. Similarly, training was provided to the staff of 835 public and private hospitals.
The meeting was briefed that a total of 13,928 pharmacies were inspected, resulting in the seizure of 1,977 drug stocks. Of 8,493 samples taken for quality testing, 992 were found substandard, and 211 were declared spurious.
The concerned officials told the meeting that 234 pharmacies were sealed, 107 FIRs filed, and the Drug Court imposed penalties amounting to Rs. 8.59 million, alongside imprisonment sentences. The Chief Minister emphasized the importance of strict enforcement of healthcare standards and drug quality to ensure the well-being of the public, and directed the quarters concerned to ensure regular monitoring and follow-ups in this regard.
