Peshawar [Pakistan], February 22 : Medical Teaching Institutions (MTIs) operating outside Peshawar are facing acute financial shortfalls that are undermining patient care, senior officials have revealed. They urged the provincial government to address what they describe as a growing imbalance in healthcare spending.
Administrators from several districts said insufficient funding has restricted their ability to procure modern diagnostic equipment, ensure medicine supplies, and recruit much-needed medical and support staff, as reported by Dawn.
According to Dawn, officials stated that the provincial government's financial focus remains largely centred on Peshawar, which hosts five of the province's 11 MTIs. This concentration of resources, they argued, has left hospitals in districts such as Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, Dera Ismail Khan, and Bannu struggling to cope with heavy patient inflows.
As a result, thousands of patients travel to the capital for treatment, contributing to overcrowding and bed shortages in Peshawar's hospitals.
Hospital administrators stated that the majority of funds allocated to district MTIs are consumed by recurring expenses, including staff salaries, utility bills, and medical oxygen costs. After these expenditures, only limited amounts remain for purchasing medicines, upgrading facilities, or replacing outdated machines.
Several institutions continue to rely on equipment acquired years ago, while proposals to install CT scanners, Cath labs, and MRI machines have stalled due to financial constraints.
A medical director said that despite a significant rise in patient numbers over the past seven years, no additional funds were provided for equipment upgrades or new hiring. Another administrator stressed that fulfilling the government's pledge of providing free medicines in wards and emergency departments requires urgent financial backing, as highlighted by Dawn.
Officials also questioned the performance of well-funded institutions such as Lady Reading Hospital, which reportedly receives around PKR 8 billion annually, yet continues to face criticism over service standards.
The MTI Policy Board, led by Nausherwan Barki, has recently conducted visits to district hospitals to assess operational gaps. The chairman pledged closer engagement to help institutions meet defined benchmarks, as reported by Dawn.
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