ISLAMABAD
\nPrime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday took notice of the non-functional computed tomography angiography (CTA) machine at the cardiology department of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), after former premier Imran Khan was brought to the hospital for a medical check-up.
\nThe premier has constituted a committee, headed by the Establishment Division secretary, to examine all aspects of the matter, determine the facts and fix responsibility.
\nAccording to a senior doctor who is part of the medical facility\u2019s administration, the lapse occurred after the PTI founder was brought to the hospital in the early hours of Friday without prior intimation, referral or patient registration.
\n\u201cIdeally, Imran Khan should have been brought in daylight, as it was not an emergency case, and he should have been registered as a patient. All departments were not in the loop,\u201d he told Dawn.
\nAccording to credible sources at Pims, who requested anonymity, Imran\u2019s CTA \u2014 commonly known as CT angiography \u2014 was recommended, but the test could not be completed because the facility was unavailable. Imran was subsequently taken back to Adiala jail.
\nOn Friday, after it emerged that Imran\u2019s CTA could not be conducted at Pims, some senior doctors said the required machine was available in the radiology department, but the information was not brought to the attention of those treating Imran while he was at the hospital.
\nThe CTA machine at the Cardiac Centre had been available in 2011 but later became non-functional, the doctors said.
\nA senior doctor added that the Cardiac Centre had a facility for conventional angiography, in which a vein is punctured and a camera is used to diagnose a blockage. The functional CTA machine, however, was available only in the radiology department, the doctor added.
\nAnother doctor reiterated that the CTA machine in the radiology department had been functional since March 2022.
\n\u201cThe CTA is performed by a radiologist on the advice of clinicians as it uses radiation rather than requiring a vein to be punctured. However, no one advised that Imran be referred to the radiology department,\u201d he said.
\nHe further told Dawn that after the matter came to light, Health Secretary Muhammad Aslam Ghauri visited Pims and verified that the machine was available.
\nA senior Pims administrator, who requested anonymity, said cardiologists were asked about the test but told officials that the facility was unavailable. As a result, it was conveyed that Imran Khan\u2019s CTA could not be conducted.
\n\u201cThe fact is that most CTAs are referred to private facilities because the machine at the Cardiac Centre is out of order. When the issue was raised on Saturday, the radiology department was asked to provide records of CTAs conducted there. It provided just one report, while claiming that around a dozen others were also available,\u201d he said.
\nThe officer, who has administrative responsibilities, said he had been receiving requests from the Cardiac Centre for years to arrange a machine, so no one considered referring Imran to the radiology department.
\n\u201cMoreover, cardiologists used to conduct CTAs themselves in the past, so they are not accustomed to referring patients to the radiology department,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
Inquiry committee
\nAccording to an official government statement, the premier took notice of the non-functional CTA facility at Pims and constituted an inquiry committee to determine the facts.
\nThe premier directed the committee to examine all aspects of the matter and submit a report.
\nThe committee would be headed by the Establishment Division secretary, while its members would include National Health Services secretary, Brigadier Dr Jahanzeb Ali of the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC), Dr Nusratullah Chaudhry, Professor Dr Nadeem Hayat Malik, Brigadier (retd) Dr Azmat Hayat of Pims, and AFIC CT angiography technician Umar Farooq. The committee may co-opt any other member if required.
\nAccording to the terms of reference, the committee will determine whether Pims had the technical capability to perform CTA since 2022 and, if so, whether the required technical facilities, human resources and software were available.
\nIt will also examine the number, dates and nature of CTA procedures performed at Pims since 2022, along with relevant hospital records and other documentary evidence.
\nThe committee will investigate the coordination and referral mechanisms between the cardiology and radiology departments and assess the role of the hospital administration in providing the facility.
\nIt will also examine whether patients in the cardiology department were routinely referred to private medical centres for CTA.
\nIn cases of such referrals, the committee will determine whether any particular private facility was given preference and how much business was diverted from the public hospital to private centres.
\nThe inquiry committee will further investigate any lack of coordination, mismanagement or misunderstanding between the cardiology and radiology departments that may have resulted in a loss to the public interest and identify the officers or offices responsible.
\nPM Shehbaz directed the committee to conduct a comprehensive examination of all relevant facts and records and submit its report so that further action could be taken in accordance with the law.
\nThe National Health Services ministry will provide the necessary assistance to the committee during the inquiry.<\/p>\n
Imran\u2019s hospital transfer saga
\nOn Tuesday, the SC had ordered the government to shift Imran to Shifa International Hospital within two days for examination and treatment by a multidisciplinary medical board.
\nA three-member bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed and comprising Justices Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Ishtiaq Ibr\u00adahim issued the interim directions on petitions seeking Imran\u2019s hospitalisation, access to personal physicians and family members and provision of his medical record to his family.
\nThe court had also ordered that Dr Uzma Khan and Dr Faisal Sultan \u2014 Imran Khan\u2019s personal physician \u2014 be present during the medical check-up by a medical board.
\nAt the same time, Imran\u2019s family members, PTI members and lawyers associated with him were barred from disclosing his health condition or medical reports to the media or public until the next hearing.
\nThe next day, the government had filed a review plea against the court\u2019s order to shift Imran to the private hospital, arguing that the directive was discriminatory and issued in violation of prison rules and principles of natural justice.
\nHowever, the SC had returned the plea on Thursday with the objection that the contents of the affidavit and facts, along with the review petition filed under Article 188 of the Constitution, had not been properly drawn up and that one of the paper books of was not in order.
\nThe same night, elaborate arrangements were put in place in and around Shifa International Hospital, and all signs pointed to the PTI founder being brought there, in compliance with SC order.
\nHowever, it became clear on Friday morning that Imran had been taken to Pims for a check-up and then subsequently transported back to prison.
\nInformation Minister Attaullah Tarar blamed \u201cthe security situation created by PTI workers on the way to and outside Al Shifa Hospital\u201d for the diversion.
\nIn a post on X, he said, \u201cIn the light of the SC\u2019s order, the prisoner was taken to the hospital under appropriate security arrangements during the night between August 20 and 21.
\n\u201cA team of qualified doctors, including an ophthalmologist, a cardiologist, and a physician, conducted a detailed examination of him and declared him medically fit,\u201d he said.
\nLater, the Pims administration said that two specialists from Shifa Inter\u00adnational Hospital participated in Imran\u2019s eye assessment, while other exa\u00adminations were carri\u00ad\u00aded out by the concerned Pims specialists.
\nImran has been taken to Pims multiple times after his eye ailment \u2014 right central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) \u2014 came to light in late January.
\n\u201cThe clinical input ari\u00adsing from the ophthalmological assessment was taken into account alongside findings of the investigations conducted at Pims,\u201d the statement said.
\nMeanwhile, the government on Thursday filed a fresh review petition against the SC\u2019s Aug 18 order. The Islamabad chief commissioner again filed the plea, saying that his office had a direct, substantial and legally protected interest in the matter and that the Aug 18 order adversely affected its constitutional authority.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday took notice of the non-functional computed tomography angiography (CTA) machine at the cardiology department of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), after former premier Imran Khan was brought to the hospital for a medical check-up. The premier has constituted a committee, headed by the Establishment Division secretary, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":548571,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-563371","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-news"],"yoast_head":"\n