BY: FT Correspondent:
ISLAMABAD — The Health Services Academy (HSA) has successfully concluded a 12-week Capacity Development Programme for 150 nominated paramedics and allied health professionals from Balochistan, aimed at strengthening emergency response, critical care and frontline healthcare delivery across district hospitals.
Nawabzada Mir Jamal Khan Raisani attended the graduation ceremony as the chief guest. Balochistan Health Minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar, Gilgit-Baltistan Health Minister Iqbal Hassan, Vice Chancellor HSA Prof. Dr. Shahzad Ali Khan, Vice Chancellor Bolan University of Medical and Health Sciences Prof. Dr. Shabir Ahmed Lehri, Project Director Nadeem Sajjad Kayani and senior faculty members also attended the ceremony.
Project Director Nadeem Sajjad Kayani said that out of 150 health professionals nominated by the provincial government, 92 in-service personnel, including 78 men and 14 women from more than 21 districts, successfully completed the rigorous 12-week theoretical and clinical training. The participants included emergency medical technicians, staff nurses, dispensers, anaesthesia technicians and medical technicians.
Specialized hands-on training was provided in critical care areas including Intensive Care Units (ICU), Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU), anaesthesia, emergency care and climate-resilient healthcare.
As part of the broader capacity-building programme, 50 specialized staff members of Trauma Center Quetta also received 14 days of intensive clinical training at JPMC and SIUT in Karachi.
The curriculum covered seven key competency areas, including clinical knowledge, practical skills, professional ethics, communication, interprofessional collaboration, evidence-based practices and digital health.
The trainees also received six specialized emergency-response certifications, including Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), Trauma Management, Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP), Health Emergency Preparedness and HSA’s specialized SHIELD course, supported by simulation and hospital-based training.
Addressing the ceremony, Chief Guest Nawabzada Mir Jamal Khan Raisani termed the modernization of healthcare services in Balochistan a national imperative and said such practical training would significantly improve patient care in underserved areas.
Balochistan Health Minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar said human resource development was central to provincial healthcare reforms, while Gilgit-Baltistan Health Minister Iqbal Hassan appreciated the training model and requested HSA to replicate a similar capacity-building initiative for healthcare workers in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Vice Chancellor HSA Prof. Dr. Shahzad Ali Khan reaffirmed the academy’s commitment to providing continuous technical support to strengthen Balochistan’s healthcare system.
The ceremony concluded with the distribution of completion certificates among the graduating health professionals.
