Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) have been dissolved by a Presidential Ordinance and new doctors’ registration and Medical Colleges Accreditation body shall be established in its place under the nomenclature of Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC). The Ministry of National Health Services has taken over the possession of the building and record of PMDC and barred the entry of its 220 employees into the premises for a week time.
The move has invited sharp reaction from the representative body of doctors, Pakistan Medical Association, by describing it undemocratic and calling upon opposition political parties to reject it.
A lot of rot has been accumulated in the PMDC in the previous PPP government. It accorded accreditation to a number of private medical colleges which did not meet the required criteria. On the writ petition filed by Pakistan Association of Private Medical Institution in 2017, the Supreme Court of Pakistan of Pakistan disbanded PMDC on January 12, 2018 as it was functioning unlawfully after the lapsing of PMDC (Amendment) Ordinance 2015 in April, 2016. Seven-member interim committee had been formed under the retired judge of Supreme Court, Justice Shakirullah Jan. The committee had been authorized to review and inspect private medical colleges.
Over the past few years PMDC had adopted a policy of victimisation MBBS degree holders of foreign medical colleges during the registration process, compelling them opt for PLAB examination and leave their motherland for good.
A policy of pick and choose was adopted for awarding the registration document after two examination for foreign medical graduates and during that process several years of young doctors used to be lapsed. Hopefully, new legislation and rule framed thereon will clear the rot accumulated in PMDC.
