ISLAMABAD: A PIMS assessment report has identified irregularities in the hospital’s administrative, nursing, clinical and biomedical functions following last month’s fire that killed 14 newborns. This is according to Health Ministry sources.
Specialists working under the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority (IHRA) carried out the initial assessment. They will submit it to Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal.
Experts from surgical, medical, administrative, nursing and biomedical disciplines inspected the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences. In addition, they checked its heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system and medical gas supply lines.
The assessment is expected to form the basis for directions to improve hospital administration, clinical services and infrastructure. The detailed findings and recommended corrective measures have not yet been made public.
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The review follows the August 26 neonatal nursery fire, which killed 14 infants. An earlier inquiry identified institutional, administrative and fire-safety failures. However, it said the precise source of ignition had not been conclusively established.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif subsequently ordered the suspension of eight officials and directed criminal proceedings against those identified by the inquiry committee. Meanwhile, the National Assembly’s health committee has separately demanded accountability and third-party fire, clinical, safety and performance audits of healthcare facilities in Islamabad.
Dr Muhammad Salman, chief executive of the National Institutes of Health, was later posted as PIMS executive director on deputation. He is retaining additional charge of the NIH.
