The provincial heath budget is a fine example of old wine in a new bottle as the six new development schemes introduced in the budget are a mere “eyewash” with the development funds of just Rs 560 million allocated to cater to a population of more than 90 million, Pakistan Today has learnt.
The tall claims of the provincial regime declaring health a priority has proven ‘sour’ because only six new development schemes have been announced and most of them relate to upgrading, all under the category of tertiary care hospitals. Four new schemes introduced are to upgrade the DHQ hospitals to teaching hospitals for newly-announced medical colleges by the chief minister last year in Gujranwala, Sialkot, Sahiwal and DG Khan.
Interestingly, the Punjab government inaugurated four new medical colleges last year without realising that the DHQs attached need to be upgraded to teaching hospitals. Amongst the new schemes, the highest allocation is Rs 200 million to complete the left over works of 410 bed hospital in Bahawalpur, while Rs 80 million have been allocated to the institute of gynecology on Lawrence Road Lahore.
Moreover, like the previous year, the health planners have once again kept a block amount of Rs 4.4 billion which implies they could be spent at the discretion of the chief executive, while the department has not proposed any planning on its part. Furthermore, a total of 107 ongoing schemes have been taken up. Even last year, only 12 new schemes were introduced while the ‘motto’ was to complete the 112 ongoing schemes from previous years, which included major projects such as the Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology and Surgical Tower at Mayo Hospital, being just two major examples.
However, the Health Department has failed to complete both the major projects, let alone the rest across the province. In this regard, Rs 11.4 billion have been allocated and the department once again vows to complete the project this year.
The department has further claimed to be focusing on the millennium development goals, while an improved focus on less developed areas. The budget also focuses on preventive healthcare with TB control programme, prevention and control of hepatitis programme, expanded programme of immunisation, safe blood transfusion service and provision of cell separator machines. The department has once again shifted focus on rural health centres and has decided not to open any new basic health unit. The focus has also been on upgrading and reforming the existing rural health centres to provide better health facilities to the masses. The medical community also criticised priorities set by the government for the health sector. PMA President Dr Ashraf Nizami said it was ‘pitiable’ that so little was earmarked for the health sector after a complete devolution of health to the provinces after the 18th Amendment. He said the medical community expected far more spending with a focus on providing facilities to the poor. “Trauma is the number one cause of death in our country and it is the need of the hour to have a trauma institute in at least the metropolitan, as most of the victims of trauma and accident are youth, but the government has disappointed the people,” he said.
He said the way PRSP was being run needed to be revised. Specialised units for area specific diseases should open up in all districts instead of “blindly following” the western countries who have different disease incidence.