ISLAMABAD: As many as 200,000 individuals, including serving and retired employees of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) along with their family members, will suffer as the civic agency mulls a plan to outsource the Capital Hospital.

The departmental hospital, also known as CDA Hospital, is meant to provide free treatment to serving and retired employees along with their family members. But now, the employees fear that a process has kick-started in which they might be completely deprived of this health facility.

According to documents available with Dawn, the CDA has been considering the implementation of various projects through the public-private partnership (PPP) mode, including the outsourcing of CDA Hospital.

“This is a large-scale project, which is complex in nature given that it requires end-to-end solutions for its expansion, rehabilitation and operation through public-private partnership. The outsourcing of CDA Hospital would require careful financial and technical planning through an internationally reputed consultant. As such, this project would qualify under Section 4 of the PPP Authority Regulations, 2023 since the project is one of its kind to be implemented at the federal level under PPP mode,” a document signed by CDA Board Secretary Syed Safdar Ali stated.

Board meeting’s minutes reveal civic agency has principally decided to outsource hospital

According to the document, the CDA board approved hiring a technical adviser through the PPP authority. The minutes of the board meeting also showed that the CDA had principally decided to outsource the Capital Hospital.

“The summary was presented by the member administration, CDA. After due deliberations and information/input on the summary, the board principally approved the proposal. The board further directed that on implementation of health insurance policy, Capital Hospital will be shifted to a sustainable financial model aimed at provision of top quality health services on a self-sustaining basis,” the minutes revealed.

The plan has caused anxiety among CDA workers, who fear they will be deprived of this facility.

“Currently, all the serving and retired employees along with their families are entitled to health treatment. Daughters of employees, if they don’t get married, are entitled…and jobless sons also avail the facility. After the construction of a new block, there are now around 500 beds in the hospital and thousands of staffers,” the CDA employees said. They added that thousands of patients visited the facility daily.

According to the CDA workers, this hospital is like other departmental hospitals such as KRL and Wapda facilities.

“The CDA generates funds [for the hospital] on its own but now efforts are underway to provide treatment to employees and their families through an insurance company. A huge amount in the form of a premium will be paid and employees will be directed to get treatment from private hospitals,” an employee said.

Another employee said that the hospital was located at the prime location in Islamabad’s Sector G-6, alleging some elements were ‘eying’ the land and others, who were about to retire, were supporting the decision as they may be re-hired in the hospital on lucrative posts. He said there was no departmental hospital in the country that provided treatment to its employees through an insurance company.

“Even the doctors of this hospital will get the treatment through the insurance company,” the CDA employee claimed.

Capital Hospital Director General Dr Ghulam Saqlain, while talking to Dawn, said it was government’s policy to outsource the hospital and reduce the expenditure.

“The CDA Board has given approval for health cards through which employees will get the treatment... I don’t think that the employees will suffer because of the decision because those who have been making decisions will get the treatment from the same hospital,” he claimed.

CDA’s Member Administration Talat Mahmood, while talking to Dawn, said that it was just a proposal and the matter was at an initial stage.

“It has been discussed that the employees can be treated under insurance and they can get the treatment from any private hospital. Just a few briefings have been held and this decision is not final,” he said.

It is worth mentioning that Capital Hospital was initially incorporated as a small daycare medical centre providing medical facilities to the employees of the CDA on an OPD basis. Then a facility for in-patients was established and in March 1981, a 60-bed hospital was established.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2024