LAHORE– Punjab is all set to scale up the Patient Referral System to entire Lahore after successful pilot in the Jinnah Hospital vicinity, Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid said here on Saturday.
The minister called a review meeting of the Referral System implementing team at the Committee Room of the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department.
The meeting was attended by Special Secretary Silwat Saeed, Additional Secretary Nadir Chatha, Vice Chancellor King Edward Medical University Prof. Khalid Masood Gondal, MD Punjab Health Foundation Ms. Kiran Khurshid, Principal Ameeruddin Medical College Prof. Dr. Sardar Alfareed, Vice Chancellor Faisalabad Medical University Dr. Farid Zafar, Principal Allama Iqbal Medical College Prof. Arif Tajammul, Prof. Dr. Amir Aziz, Dr. AKhtar Rashid, Dr. Hussain Jaffery, Additional Secretary Admin SHME Amir Ghazi, Additional Secretary Technical Dr. Salman Shahid, Prof. Farid and technical experts attended the meeting.
The Committee gave a detailed briefing on the lessons learnt from the Pilot introduced in the vicinity of Jinnah Hospital areas. The Patient Referral System envisages development of linkage system among healthcare facilities of key tiers.
As a pilot, the dispensaries and Filter Clinics in Jinnah Hospital zone were linked. Filter Clinics and Family Units were renamed as Jinnah Satellite Filter Clinics, providing treatment to population at their doorstep.
“Based on the lessons learnt from this model, the project will be initially be scaled up in Tertiary Care Hospitals of Lahore and then phase-wise extended to the rest of Punjab,” the Minister said.
As part of the Referral System, experts of relevant fields will visit the primary facilities and the patients can go and seek treatment there. Basic services like safe deliveries, obstetrics as well as treatment for minor ailment will be available to patients in the primary facilities.
Ms. Kiran Khurshid from the Punjab Health Foundation gave a presentation on the model, shared lessons learnt and the way forward.
“The Punjab Health Foundation deserves appreciation for introducing and implementing the pilot of the project. I also appreciate Vice Chancellors and Principals for their extraordinary commitment and technical input for the project,” Dr. Yasmin Rashid said.— PRESS RELEASE
