PESHAWAR: Concerns have emerged within the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa health department over junior doctors occupying senior management positions despite the availability of more experienced medics. Officials say several posts meant for BPS-20 officers are currently being handled by doctors from lower grades.
According to sources, the most recent example is the appointment of a BPS-17 doctor as director of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), a position classified as BPS-19. The EPI is considered a critical wing of the department, working closely with Unicef and other international partners on immunisation programmes.
Officials further revealed that at least three regional directors, who are BPS-19 officers, are holding BPS-20 posts within the department. They said similar arrangements exist in several districts where junior doctors are serving as district health officers and hospital medical superintendents.
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Sources argued that assigning junior officers to senior positions deprived eligible senior doctors of their legal right to promotion. They added that the lack of administrative experience among junior appointees could negatively impact governance, service delivery and patient care across hospitals.
They pointed out that regional health directorates in South, Hazara and Malakand were created to decentralise decision-making and resolve administrative and financial issues locally. However, these posts legally require BPS-20 officers, a criterion allegedly not being followed.
The officials also claimed that key positions such as director general of the Provincial Health Services Academy and additional director general services (human resource management) were being managed by officers below the required grade. Nearly half of the DHOs and medical superintendents across districts were reportedly junior officers, they added.
Health Secretary Shahidullah Khan, however, defended the department’s actions, describing some appointments as temporary or “look-after” arrangements. He said these posts would be filled by regular senior officers once qualified personnel became available.
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“We aim to appoint experienced and competent people to improve patient care,” the secretary said, insisting that all postings were made on merit and stop-gap arrangements would be reviewed.