old news but didnt get highlighted enough... This is one of the best reforms in the health sector:
KP Health Care Commission Act, 2015 adopted
January 19, 2015
RECORDER REPORT
0 Comments
The provincial government passed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Care Commission Act, 2015 to promote and improve patient safety and health care service quality in private sector and provide mechanism for banning quackery in all its forms and manifestation in the province.
Under the Act, the provincial government through a notification would establish a commission to be known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Healthcare Commission. It would be a corporate body having perpetual succession and a common seal, with powers to acquire and dispose of property both movable and immovable and would be the said name sue and be sued. The main office of the commission would be in Peshawar with other regional offices as government may establish.
The commission would consist of ten members with three of its members as official members and seven members would be from private sector as non-official members. The official members would include representatives from health department, Home Department and Pakistan National Accreditation Council.
The chairman would be elected by the non-official members through voting amongst its non-official members, who would preside over the commission meetings. In case of his absence, the chairperson may nominate a member as acting chairman or it he has been not done so, the members present would elect a chairperson for that meeting.
The chairperson would convene meetings of the commission on quarterly basis for the conduct of the business of the commission. Extra-ordinary meetings of the commission may be convened as and when required. The extra-ordinary meeting may be called by the chairman or on the request of three or more members in writing for reasons specified there.
The commission would perform such functions and exercise such powers as may be required to ensure the safety of patient and health staff and to improve quality of public and private healthcare services.
The commission would set standards or requirements for registration and licensing of healthcare establishments that ensure patient and health staff safety; registration of all healthcare establishments and issuance of license defining scope and extent of services to be provided; ensure minimum standards of patient and health staff safety in public and private sectors; play technical and advisory, educative and disciplinary role to support the registered and licensed healthcare establishments to improve quality of services; regulate the registered and licensed healthcare establishments in public and private health sectors through health regulations tools; certification, peer review, clinical governance, self-regulation or any other tool nationally or internationally recognised and accepted; grant renew, suspend and cancel licenses in prescribed manner to healthcare establishments and to vary terms and conditions and purposes of the license; enquire and investigate into maladministration, malpractices and failure in the provision of private healthcare services and issue consequential advice and orders; impose and collect fees and charges on registration, licensing or for any other services rendered to healthcare establishments such as training on guidelines, standards, etc, under this Act; impose and collect fines on violation, breach or non-compliance of the provision of this Act, rules, regulations and standards; advocate rights and responsibilities of recipients and providers of the private healthcare services; hold seminars, conferences and meetings on developing awareness about provision of high quality private healthcare services; co-ordinate, liaise and network with any person, agency or institution for the purpose of this Act; appoint, engage, authorise and terminate employees, consultants, advisors, attorneys, inspection teams, surveyors, contractors, agents and experts on such terms and conditions as it deems necessary and assign, delegate or entrust them with such functions and powers as are expedient for the performance of functions of the commission; devise mechanism to deal with quackery and to monitor service performance against prescribed standards.
The commission may exercise the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (V of 1908), in respect of summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; compelling the production of documents; receiving evidence on affidavits; and issuing commission for the examination of witnesses and the government may, as and when it consider necessary, advice the commission on matters of policy.
The commission may establish technical, finance & grant, performance review and continuous quality improvement committees for assistance and advice to Chief Executive in relation to performance of functions and determine the membership, remuneration of members and terms of reference of each committee.
The government would constitute and notify a Search and Nomination Council, for recommendations of persons suitable to be appointed as non-official members which would consist of Minister of Health as chairman, Additional Chief Secretary Planning and Development Department as vice chairman, Secretary health, Vice Chancellor, KMU; a philanthropist with substantial contribution to the public healthcare system to be nominated by government, retired senior person from medical profession, a representative of civil society.
The commission would appoint a person as a Chief Executive Officer having a minimum of fifteen years of experience in health management, finance, law and regulation or other fields related to service regulation.
The commission would establish Registration and Licensing Bodies at the divisional level for registration of healthcare establishment and issue license defining scope and extent of services to be provided by such healthcare establishment. A private healthcare establishment would not provide healthcare services without being registered and licensed under this section of the Act.
KP Health Care Commission Act, 2015 adopted | Business Recorder
