Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s decision to suspend eight officials, including the Executive Director of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), and order criminal proceedings against those found responsible for the tragic fire that claimed lives of 14 infants was a necessary step. The action, taken on recommendations of the inquiry committee, sends an important message that negligence resulting in loss of innocent lives cannot be treated as a routine administrative matter.
Given past experiences, however, doubts had inevitably been raised about the inquiry process itself. There was also considerable concern over apparent absence of action against the Executive Director of PIMS, raising questions about whether accountability would once again stop at lower levels. The Prime Minister’s decision has, at least at this stage, demonstrated that government has treated the tragedy with seriousness it deserves and is prepared to hold senior officials accountable.
Yet no departmental suspension, criminal case or punishment can heal wounds of parents who lost their newborn children. Their loss is permanent. Accountability, therefore, must serve a larger purpose: ensuring that such a tragedy is never repeated. Those responsible for criminal negligence must be proceeded against strictly in accordance with the law, without discrimination or political considerations. Government’s attention must now move beyond punishment to prevention. Public hospitals urgently require adequate funding, competent human resources, effective safety systems and professional management. It would be a mistake to view the solution merely as revamping of PIMS. The entire public-sector hospital network needs to be assessed and strengthened, with clear standards for patient safety, emergency preparedness, staffing and accountability. Provincial governments must also play their part. Health is largely a provincial responsibility, and meaningful reform cannot be achieved through federal action alone.
PM Shehbaz Sharif has a reputation as a doer. The country now expects that approach to be applied to transformation of public-sector healthcare. The real measure of government’s response will ultimately be whether it can transform public-sector hospitals into safe, well-equipped and professionally managed institutions where no parent has to lose a child because of preventable negligence.
