The prices set for private medical colleges across Pakistan have also increased significantly, which has attracted criticism from the Senate sub-committee on National Health Services Regulations and Coordination. This problem was recently discussed during the meeting by Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan. It is being identified as one of the main problems affecting aspiring medical students and their families in terms of money.
Unprecedented Fee Hikes
It is unfortunate, lamented the Chair; during the session, Senator Palwasha showed that the annual fees of MBBS and BDS in private medical colleges have raised from Rs 800,000 to 3 million in 2023-24. This tendency has caused serious concerns about the costs of medical colleges to families and the absence of proper checks and balances over such universities.
PMDC’s Role in Question
Senator Palwasha vehemently condemned the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), saying that it has not regulated these colleges appropriately. As she noted, the PMDC has not only failed but has actively participated in the rampant fee increment. She urged the government to wake up from its slumber. Also, she encouraged public members to report any exploitation by private medical colleges to the committee.
The senator also called on parents to be refunded for the large sums they paid to such colleges since he considered the financial exploitation unworthy.
Lack of rules and measures of the government
Originally enacted by the PMDC in 2023, it clarified the authority to rein in private medical colleges while supervising the fees they set and determining whether they were reasonable. Nevertheless, the council has yet to come up with overwhelming evidence of any exercise done since these regulatory powers were accorded.
Ms Dr Shaista Faisal, the Registrar of PMDC, acknowledges that, at present, the council has a legal status that earlier regulations lacked the status of law. Therefore, PMPC could only sometimes force people into line. Regarding this backdrop, let us remember that the PMDC had capped the fees in 2012 at Rs 500,000 per year with a 5 per cent annual increase, which private colleges have waived.
The Special Secretary NHSR&C Mirza Nasir ud din Mashud, briefing the committee, also informed that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif had taken notice and constituted a standing committee to assess the charges of private medical institutions.
Public and Legal Responsibility
The PMDC was requested by the Senate committee to evaluate the financial standing of private medical schools. Moreover, Senator Syed Masroor Ahsan also asked how something could have been done despite the 2023 Act enabling the council and highlighted the need for this issue.
Conclusion
At their desires, the private medical schools have raised their tuition. This is not only an issue about education but also a concern related to the requirement for better regulation of fees across the country. While the government is now trying to address such issues, students and their families are waiting for a fair solution to the Prep scoreboard issue in the education sector.
Unfortunately, the monitory tests will continue in the coming months to see whether the private medical colleges will be made to answer for themselves or whether students will be left to pay hefty charges.
