PESHAWAR/KOHAT – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to outsource the management and operations of 37 public health facilities across 21 districts under a public-private partnership (PPP) model, aiming to improve the quality, accessibility and coverage of healthcare services across the province.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Foundation has invited expressions of interest from eligible and experienced firms, organisations and joint ventures to manage the selected facilities. The programme covers Type-B, Type-C and Type-D hospitals, with each health facility to be treated as a separate project under the proposed arrangement.
According to details released by the Health Foundation, Lakki Marwat has the highest number of facilities with five, followed by Mardan with four and Karak with three. Nowshera, Orakzai, Shangla, Lower Dir, Swat, Hangu and North Waziristan each have two facilities included in the programme, while Kohat, Kurram, Dera Ismail Khan, Buner, Malakand, Mansehra, Haripur, Upper Dir, Mohmand, Peshawar and South Waziristan’s Mehsud Belt each have one facility.
The facilities include Type-D Hospital Lachi in Kohat, Type-D hospitals at Latamber, Sabirabad and Takht-e-Nasrati in Karak, THQ Hospital Sadda in Kurram, Type-D hospitals at Daboori and Kalaya in Orakzai, Type-D hospitals at Doaba and Thall in Hangu, Type-C DHQ Hospital Ghalanai in Mohmand and Type-D Hospital Mattani in Peshawar.
The five facilities included from Lakki Marwat are Type-B DHQ Hospital Lakki Marwat, Type-C hospitals at Lakki Marwat and Sarai Naurang, Type-D Hospital Titter Khel and RHC Landiwa.
Under the proposed PPP framework, successful applicants will assume responsibility for the management and day-to-day operations of their respective health facilities. Interested firms, organisations and joint ventures will be required to indicate their preferences according to the prescribed procedure before being assessed under the relevant selection process.
The Health Foundation said the initiative was aimed at bringing experienced private-sector entities into the management of selected public health facilities to improve healthcare delivery and access for local communities.
The outsourcing plan represents a significant shift in the management of selected public-sector healthcare facilities in KP. Its effectiveness, however, will depend on transparent selection, clearly defined performance standards, regular monitoring, and accountability to ensure that improved management translates into better patient care without compromising affordable access to public healthcare.
