ISLAMABAD: A series of administrative and governance-related controversies at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) have escalated to the Prime Minister (PM) Office and the Parliamentary Committee on Health, raising serious concerns about management and appointments at the country’s largest federal hospital.
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The issues came into sharper focus during a recent internal meeting chaired by Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU) Vice Chancellor Dr Tanveer Khaliq. Participants noted that four out of five dean positions at the affiliated hospital remain vacant, while the head of the Medicine Department has yet to be appointed following the retirement of the previous incumbent.
Concerns were also raised over allegations that the executive director (ED) of Pims had designated himself as head of the Critical Care Department after being promoted to BPS-21. Participants warned that the absence of deans and heads of departments was weakening the chain of command and affecting academic and administrative oversight.
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Another key issue highlighted was the alleged failure to send subject specialists to the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) for interviews. Critics argued that this practice could compromise transparency, merit and legality in faculty appointments and postgraduate inductions at the institution.
A senior SZABMU official said that only one dean position — Basic Sciences — was currently filled, while the deanships of Medicine, Surgery, Dentistry and Nursing were vacant. He added that under university statutes, senior-most professors were required to be nominated as deans, a process that had been neglected in recent years.
Professor of Medicine Dr Shafat Khatoon has formally written to the Prime Minister’s Office, alleging serious procedural flaws in ongoing recruitment and postgraduate induction processes. She warned that these irregularities posed a long-term risk to the institution’s credibility and patient care.
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Executive Director Pims Dr Rana Imran Sikander rejected all allegations, calling them baseless. He said dean appointments fell under the university’s domain and defended his administrative decisions as necessary to ensure uninterrupted functioning of departments.