ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for National Health Services and Regulations Mustafa Kamal, Thursday, while vowing to improve the healthcare system of the country to serve the masses, especially the underprivileged class in a better way, has stressed the need for introducing latest medical approaches.
Speaking to the media during his visit to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), he highlighted the importance of introducing innovations such as telemedicine to ease the burden on existing hospitals.
He pointed out that the lack of Basic Health Units forces people to rely on major hospitals. Kamal highlighted that telemedicine, a global practice, could help provide medical services, including consultations and medicines, directly to people’s doorsteps.
Kamal said the ministry in collaboration with other relevant quarters is working towards implementing One Patient, One Identity system, which will not be confined to a single hospital but will be extended to healthcare facilities across the country.
The minister said the Prime Minister of Pakistan will soon inaugurate various modern health related projects at PIMS including seven state-of-the-art operation theatres. He shared that seven operation theatres have been constructed at a cost of Rs2.1 billion, which will be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. While acknowledging that things are not ideal, he said there is room for improvement.
He stressed the need for Pakistan to adopt telemedicine as part of its healthcare system, saying that treating the entire population through traditional healthcare systems is not feasible.
“We need to provide medicines and doctors at people’s doorsteps. We can’t treat everyone through hospitals alone. Considering the modern world, we should move toward telemedicine,” he said.
Kamal also clarified that there are currently no plans to hand over PIMS to a public-private partnership. He added that future work on the health card scheme is under way. “The healthcare sector is connected to the welfare of humanity. When people are in pain, they go to hospitals. The poor turn to public hospitals, while the wealthy can afford private care,” he said.
During the visit, patients raised numerous complaints in front of the health minister. One patient claimed there was a shortage of medicines and hospital beds.
Another shared that last month, X-ray films had run out and patients were forced to visit private laboratories.
One person claimed that his brother was in a life-threatening condition, but no ICU bed was available in the hospital for him. In response, PIMS Executive Director Dr Rana Imran Sikandar stated that ICU beds could not be allocated to cancer patients.
The minister directed hospital authorities to provide all possible facilities to patients.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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