With the recent restoration of the previous status of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) by the current coalition government after the signing of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council Act, 2022 by President Alvi, things are set to be heading in the right direction in medical sector.

Though only a week has passed since the PMDC bill is now fully functional, paving way for things to be set right as now the affairs of the PMDC will be controlled as per the guidelines provided in the bill signed by the President as it is aimed at reconstituting the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, which is need of the hour.

The medical and dental college students have taken a big sigh of relief with the President giving assent to  Pakistan Median and Dental Council Act.

The medical students have welcomed this new development as they hope that it will help form a uniform criteria, methodology and standard of qualification matters in the field of medicine and dentistry which have been in doldrums in recent years during the PTI regime which had dissolved the PMDC and had formed PMC through Presidential Ordinance.

It may be recalled here that the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council Bill, 2022 was passed by joint session of the Senate last month.

Credit goes to the PPP for working hard in getting approved this bill as it was the need of the hour.

That the bill was moved by none other than Pakistan Peoples Party legislator Jam Abdul Karim,  which indicates that PPP was the force behind the formation of the much-needed PMDC reconstitute  which has been hailed by the entire medical fraternity which has suffered a lot during the previous PTI governemnt. The main focal person who worked hard in this connection was MNA Dr. Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), who had long been in touch with the medical students who were perturbed over the PMC injustices during the PTI government.

The PPP leaders not only raised the issue at the Parliament but also deliberated on the various issues being faced by the medical students under the now defunct PMC.

One would agree with Dr Mehreen who had said that  national level MDCAT exam under then PMC had put medical and dental colleges candidates from far flung areas at greater disadvantage due to which a large number of medical seats remained vacant in medical and dental colleges last year. And it was after a long battle and hard work that she presented the bill to restore the Medical and Dental Council in Pakistan.

The National Assembly and Senate of Pakistan had already passed the PMDC Bill, 2022.

President Dr Arif Alvi on Thursday gave his assent to the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council Bill 2022 after its passage by the parliament.

The president signed the bill exercising his powers under Article 75 of the Constitution, a President House statement said.

And last but not the least, the newly formed PMDC should not fully focus on the issues being faced by the MDCAT students who have suffered a lot under the now-defunct PMC.

The PMDC should not form a clear cut policy so that medical students can have a system based on merit and the MDCAT exam this year is held without difficulties.

Now that the bill has been given assent by the President Alvi, the medical associations including the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) (Centre) is of the view that PMDC must be made a powerful body having complete authority to regulate the sector of medical education, its exams, NLE licensing system etc in the entire country without any political meddling and interference of the influential.

One would agree with the PMA as PMDC  represents our entire medical sector which has been facing a lot of issues which needs to be handled by the re-established PMDC.

Medical experts and educationists are of the view that a powerful and independent Council will be able to establish the norms of merits and raise the exiting standards of medical education to bring it in conformation with the international standards.  A powerful and autonomous PMDC can result in transparent exam process which can take our medical education to next level.

As a matter of fact, our doctors and health professional are second to none worldwide, and they have been played a pivotal role in the medical field the world over. America and the Gulf States are the top destination for our doctors where they are performing per excellence.

Our doctors also performed diligently without caring for their own lives, during the Corona pandemic as frontline workers. Out medical students are very industrious and they must be given fair environment to work without any undue interference and discrimination by any authority so that they can concentrate on their studies which needs a lot of concentration as medical is not an easy study or a profession.

Meanwhile, the Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Abdul Qadir Patel has shed light on each and every aspect of new development with details, while rejecting the Opposition’s criticism as the PMDC law was passed in the Senate first before the President gave assent to it and it passed in the Parliament after due deliberations and decussins.

It may be recalled here that National Medical Collages Admission Test 2020, 2021 and 2022 witnessed a lot of troubles as students alleged out of course MCQs in the exams.

They also have a lot of reservations on the exam system, the syllabus and pattern.

So the PMDC should take care of all these issues so that the students can have a transparent system under the PMDC.

How and when and at which level, the MDCAT will be held should be settled for once.

There should be uniformed system all over the country so that merit can prevail.

Published in The Daily National Courier, January, 28 2023

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