Pakistani doctors with MS, MD degrees sacked in S. Arabia

[HAIDER]

in north america pakistani and other doctors have to retrain again and go through vigerous tests and assestment steps. saudi arabia wants to do the same it think. and other arabs too. in order to get top quality doctors like america and uk get from pakistan.

Then they should adopt US entry program.

 

[fitpOsitive]

LAHORE: In a worrying development, Saudi Arabia and some other Arab countries have rejected the century-old postgraduate degree programme of Pakistan — MS (Master of Surgery) and MD (Doctor of Medicine) — removing it from the eligibility list of the highest paid tier.

This decision has reportedly rendered hundreds of highly qualified medics jobless. A majority of them are in Saudi Arabia who have been told to leave or be ready for deportation.

Rejecting Pakistan’s MS/MD degree, the Saudi ministry of health claimed it lacked structured training programme, a mandatory requirement to hire medics against important positions. After the Saudi move, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also took the similar step.

Most of the affected doctors were hired by a team of the Saudi health ministry in 2016 when it conducted interviews in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad after inviting applications online.

One of the affected doctors told Dawn the decision had brought embarrassment for them since the same degree programme offered by India, Egypt, Sudan and Bangladesh was acceptable in Saudi Arabia and other countries.

Degree programme lacks mandatory training, says Saudi health ministry; affected doctors blame CPSP for their plight

This correspondent has obtained copies of service termination letters of several doctors issued by the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS).

“Your application for professional qualification has been rejected. Reason is that your master degree from Pakistan is not acceptable according to the SCFHS regulations,” reads a letter.

Some of the affected doctors and senior health officials in Pakistan blame the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) for damaging their carrier.

A spokesperson for the Association of University Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan, Dr Asad Noor Mirza, takes it as a setback for Pakistan’s major degree qualification and disrespect to the highly qualified cream of the nation.

He claimed that CPSP delegations during recent visits to Saudi Arabia and some Gulf states had presented distorted facts about Pakistan’s university programme to maintain monopoly of the CPSP-sponsored FCPS qualification.

Mr Noor told Dawn Pakistan had to face a huge loss of foreign remittance in addition to sufferings of the medics in the form of joblessness.

Talking to this correspondent from Saudi Arabia on phone, Dr Ali Usman, an affected medic, said, “I had done five-year postgraduate qualification from the University of Health Sciences, Lahore, with training from Lahore General Hospital... But all of a sudden the Saudi health ministry terminated my job contract, landing me and my family in immense shock.”

Dr Usman said when he contacted Director General of Collaboration Department, Saudi Arabia, Saeedul Barki, he told him that his qualification was rejected when the CPSP delegation told the authorities that there was no training-based post-graduate medical degree in Pakistan, except FCPS. Mr Barki said the CPSP president held multiple meetings with relevant officials in Saudi Arabia and asked the authorities to consider only FCSP qualified Pakistani medics for jobs here.

He said the CPSP had misled the SCFHS ignoring the fact that Pakistan’s university degree qualification was a structured training programme.

University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Javed Akram dispelled the impression that the MS/MD programme was not a structured training qualification.

“The MS/MD programme was started in 1914 and the first MS degree was awarded to G.B. Kapoor from Punjab University,” he said.

“The MS/MD degrees have been declared a five-year level-III research and clinical qualification by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council,” he said.

“The MS and MD degrees are enriched with dynamic, congruent and structured curriculum comprising clinical and research component at par excellence of international standards designed by the World Federation of Medical Education,” Prof Akram said.

He said the University of Health Sciences and many senior medical experts from all over the country had recently took up the issue of termination of jobs of Pakistani medics and also talked to the SCFHS.

According to official figures, currently 4,440 postgraduates are serving at various government and private medical institutions in Pakistan. Of them, 102 are teaching as faculty members in senior positions.

CPSP president Prof Dr Zafarullah Chaudhry could not be contacted for comments despite attempts. However, Dean (academics) of the CPSP, Prof Dr Ghulam Mustafa Arain, rejected the allegations levelled by the affected doctors and said the CPSP representatives had been promoting FCPS qualification during visits abroad to create a good image of Pakistan in the field of medical education.

However, he added, “the CPSP can’t think of degrading any medical education programme of Pakistan abroad”.

Secretary of the Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department, Punjab, Momin Agha, said they had taken up the issue with provincial Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid. He said after deliberations, it had been unanimously decided to hand over the matter to the medical education committee which was looking after under-graduate and post-graduate degree programmes.

The committee comprising senior medical teachers of high repute would examine the issue in respect of reforms in the MS/MD qualification, if needed, to meet the international requirements.

“It is clear that the MS/MD qualification is a structured degree programme which meets all job requirements locally and internationally,” Mr Agha said.

He said the local health authorities would take up the matter with health managers in the Arab countries.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2019

Bad news for SA. Pakistani medical institutions are working properly.
So now, all these doctors have to do is to pass additional language exams in English, German, French, Spanish etc, apply for job search visa and leave SA. SA doesn't have money anymore.

 

[Foxtrot Delta]

Then they should adopt US entry program.

i think arabs will make their own programe. like each nation does.

 

[HAIDER]

Bad news for SA. Pakistani medical institutions are working properly.
So now, all these doctors have to do is to pass additional language exams in English, German, French, Spanish etc, apply for job search visa and leave SA. SA doesn't have money anymore.

actually , now lots of KSA menpower for lucrative job in KSA market. Hundreds of students coming back to KSA and looking for jobs , specially in the field of engineering related field.
Lower class labor jobs still available for foreigners.

 

[fitpOsitive]

actually , now lots of KSA menpower for lucrative job in KSA market. Hundreds of students coming back to KSA and looking for jobs , specially in the field of engineering related field.
Lower class labor jobs still available for foreigners.

Good for them.

 

[Dai Toruko]

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes.

Pakistani doctors will no longer be eligible to work in Saudi Arabia and a few other Arab countries as its MS (Master of Surgery)/MD (Doctor of Medicine) post-graduate programme has been de-recognised in the kingdom. The move is going to affect hundreds of qualified Pakistani doctors and render them jobless. Meanwhile, several of them have been sacked or asked to be ready for deportation, according to a Dawn report on Wednesday.

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes. Most of the affected Pakistani doctors were hired by the Saudi Health Ministry in 2016 when it conducted interviews in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, the report said.

Saudi health ministry reportedly claims that Pakistan's MS/MD programmes do not have structured training programmes, which is a requisite to employ medics for higher positions. The Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) issued termination letters to several Pakistani doctors and said their applications for professional qualifications hadbeen dismissed as the Pakistani degree was admissible as per the rules, the report added.

"Your application for professional qualification has been rejected. The reason is that your master degree from Pakistan is not acceptable according to the SCFHS regulations," read the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties' (SCFHS) letter. This development is a cause of concern for many senior doctors in Pakistan. One of them told the Pakistani news daily that the local health authorities would discuss the issue with Arab countries.

https://www.businesstoday.in/curren...es-reject-degrees-qatar-uae/story/371067.html

 

[alphapak]

If this is true then they should g back to Pakistan and serve their own country
or apply for jobs in Europe.

 

[ArabianEmpires&Caliphates]

Should this Arabized and supposed "Turkish" troll (probably an Arab-obsessed Farsi false-flagger as most Arabs and Turks do not have any problems people to people at all), not worry about the public gay parades in Turkey, the legal prostitution (male and female), massive alcohol industry, tourists coming to Turkey for sex tourism (including from Arab countries), the state of the Kurdish-majority east where PKK posters and flags are paraded openly in places like Diyarbakir (Arabic origin name btw since once ruled by Arabs), the many political prisoners and journalists jailed by Erdogan etc.?

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes.

Pakistani doctors will no longer be eligible to work in Saudi Arabia and a few other Arab countries as its MS (Master of Surgery)/MD (Doctor of Medicine) post-graduate programme has been de-recognised in the kingdom. The move is going to affect hundreds of qualified Pakistani doctors and render them jobless. Meanwhile, several of them have been sacked or asked to be ready for deportation, according to a Dawn report on Wednesday.

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes. Most of the affected Pakistani doctors were hired by the Saudi Health Ministry in 2016 when it conducted interviews in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, the report said.

Saudi health ministry reportedly claims that Pakistan's MS/MD programmes do not have structured training programmes, which is a requisite to employ medics for higher positions. The Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) issued termination letters to several Pakistani doctors and said their applications for professional qualifications hadbeen dismissed as the Pakistani degree was admissible as per the rules, the report added.

"Your application for professional qualification has been rejected. The reason is that your master degree from Pakistan is not acceptable according to the SCFHS regulations," read the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties' (SCFHS) letter. This development is a cause of concern for many senior doctors in Pakistan. One of them told the Pakistani news daily that the local health authorities would discuss the issue with Arab countries.

https://www.businesstoday.in/curren...es-reject-degrees-qatar-uae/story/371067.html

This was already discussed and it was concluded (by 90% of all Pakistani users here) that this is the fault of the Pakistani medical institutions.

Besides KSA is not in need of any foreign doctors. 1000's of new local medical doctors are getting educated at leading universities in KSA (best ranked in the entire Muslim world) and in the West. KSA's native population is growing quickly as well and approaching 30 million. 30-40 years ago when the population was lower and the building boom was enormous (largest in the world back then actually), it was another thing and outside workforce was needed whether fellow Arab or non-Arab.

It is just a question of time before only the very, very best foreign doctors will stay in KSA.

As for the smaller GCC countries with tiny populations compared to KSA, there non-natives/expats outnumber the locals heavily but that is not a healthy long-term solution which is why you have "Bahranization", "Emiratization", "Qatarization" etc. In any case there are foreign workers/doctors in every country of the world almost.

Anyway the thread starter is a troll. Suggest taking a look at his most recent posting history. This is the same retard that claims that there are pornographic shops in Makkah and brothels. He must have confused KSA with Turkey.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

The ban makes no sense specially for highly experienced doctors
However it is a issue for government to resolve

The website https://www.scfhs.org.sa/ is down


The so call regulation's site is not even running which has the so called regulation

 

[war&peace]

This was already discussed and it was concluded (by 90% of all Pakistani users here) that this is the fault of the Pakistani medical institutions.

Do not fire in vacuum...show the link or source..

 

[ArabianEmpires&Caliphates]

Well most likely a strategy by Indians , to remove Pakistani from Middle east

WTF has India to do with anything? They don't have any say. The largest Pakistani diaspora in the world (by far) is still found in the GCC. Nobody is going to remove a country that is almost landlocked with Oman. Give it a rest.

Do not fire in vacuum...show the link or source..

@Dubious can tell you.

 

[Handshake]

Well done.
Send them back we need them.
Arab should bring westron doctors.

 

[PAKISTANFOREVER]

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes.

Pakistani doctors will no longer be eligible to work in Saudi Arabia and a few other Arab countries as its MS (Master of Surgery)/MD (Doctor of Medicine) post-graduate programme has been de-recognised in the kingdom. The move is going to affect hundreds of qualified Pakistani doctors and render them jobless. Meanwhile, several of them have been sacked or asked to be ready for deportation, according to a Dawn report on Wednesday.

Following Saudi Arabia's decision, other Arabic countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have also de-recognised Pakistani medical programmes. Most of the affected Pakistani doctors were hired by the Saudi Health Ministry in 2016 when it conducted interviews in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, the report said.

Saudi health ministry reportedly claims that Pakistan's MS/MD programmes do not have structured training programmes, which is a requisite to employ medics for higher positions. The Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) issued termination letters to several Pakistani doctors and said their applications for professional qualifications hadbeen dismissed as the Pakistani degree was admissible as per the rules, the report added.

"Your application for professional qualification has been rejected. The reason is that your master degree from Pakistan is not acceptable according to the SCFHS regulations," read the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties' (SCFHS) letter. This development is a cause of concern for many senior doctors in Pakistan. One of them told the Pakistani news daily that the local health authorities would discuss the issue with Arab countries.

https://www.businesstoday.in/curren...es-reject-degrees-qatar-uae/story/371067.html

Their country, their rules. The Saudis can do what they want. It's their prerogative. Their loyalty is to the Saudi people, NOT to Pakistanis. They owe us nothing. It's about time us Pakistanis started to make Pakistan a land of prosperity rather than looking to the others as saviours.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Seems like Scfhs was bogus entity , after termination letters were sent out the website was taken offline and no trace of their policy on hiring exist on website infact no website exists

 

[ArabianEmpires&Caliphates]

Well done.
Send them back we need them.
Arab should bring westron doctors.

This effects less than 80 doctors contracted in 2016. Vast majority of them not in KSA.

There are 550 million Arabs and 20+ Arab countries. Bahrain, Qatar and UAE have a native population of a combined 3.5 million or so. Not even 1% of the world's Arabs.

Arabs have 10.000's of their own doctors if not 100.000's. On PDF we had 2 Saudi Arabian users that were doctors. @Mosamania being one before they left.

Our populations are growing, we have very educated populations, almost 100% literacy rates, and in KSA women do not even make up 20% of the work force despite more of them having university degrees than men and forming 50% of the combined population. This is bad economically for KSA and makes little sense hence the many recent reforms and the Saudi Vision 2030 that aims to significantly increase women in the workforce. If more of our women worked, we would only need 1-2 million highly qualified expats. We need to give our local youth (70% of the population of KSA is below 35 years old) job opportunities in their own countries. Instead greedy locals and non-local business owners prefer to mass-import cheaper labor and as a consequence youth unemployment in KSA is too high and you have nano technology engineers (women) working as shawarma sellers on beaches in KSA because they cannot find work. That is wrong.

Their country, their rules. The Saudis can do what they want. It's their prerogative. Their loyalty is to the Saudi people, NOT to Pakistanis. They owe us nothing. It's about time us Pakistanis started to make Pakistan a land of prosperity rather than looking to the others as saviours.

See post 3 and this post, bro.