Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has decided to initiate an annual quality categorization of all public and private medical and dental colleges in the country to access their functionality and performance, along with pinpointing the flaws in the overall system.
According to an official of PMDC, all medical and dental colleges will be ranked into five categories from A+ to D on the basis of their performance indicators, facilities and faculty, to help students in making the right choice along with improving the quality of the colleges.
To kick off the first phase, the council has decided to scrutinise all the existing public and private medical and dental colleges, the largest inspection that has ever taken place in the country. All 167 colleges will be scrutinised and new frameworks will be decided for the coming year.
PMDC official said the inspection system was developed to facilitate a transparent and open merit-based system, adding that these will be carried out on a periodical basis of college on an annual or three-year basis. He added that a new organogram of the organization was also developed which has setup the needed departments; with each department being headed by a Head of Department. This head will be supervising different sections of the department and officials and will ensure the best possible implementation of industry-related governance practises.
The official said that the council has also developed a policy to impose a revalidation requirement upon doctors in line with the international practises instead of renewing their licences after a specific period of time. This step will help doctors to keep themselves updated on the modern medical developments and techniques to provide the best quality treatment to their patients.
The council was also planning to introduce major IT-based reforms, as there digital enablement was absent at the PMDC. Steps were being taken on an urgent basis to further enhance the efficacy of the council by employing a policy of automation and digitisation of resources. A digital portal was being designed to assist the masses in verifying doctor credentials such as their field of specialisation through a mobile app. This portal will also assist the public in submitting their complaints as well as reviewing the disciplinary actions taken in regards to their complaint, the official added.
Furthermore, the council will also install proprietary software for digitisation and electronic access to the registration processes initiated or undertaken by the council. These systems will enable students and doctors to renew as well as apply for their licences, along with obtaining different certification through a digital system. Also, a proactive policy was being developed to deal with the pending litigation which included numerous court cases in a bid to resolve those disputes that could be easily dealt with by the PMDC itself, the official said.
There are no reviews yet.