When Health Professionals bring National Disgrace

Dear Dr Tahir Mehmood

AOA

It was 2006. I was attending lecture on " Primary Health Care" in the class room with my other colleagues at Abasyn Institute of Management Sciences (at that time it was AIMS located in University Town Peshawar) . Dr Nayar, as usual, as delivering the lecture. At once he felt that there is some problem of " A Specific level of understanding" among the present students. He started asking one question from each student in the class one by one. the Question was," Why you opted to have a degree of MPH"
The result was very interesting;
50% of the students were having non-medical background. They just want a degree in front of their name so called MPH.
30% were related to medical professions but they were Dispensers, Lab technician, Male Nurse and Medical Technicians. They did not know what would be the use of having an MPH degree.
20% were MBBS doctors. Out of these 20%, 75% were doing service in Development sector/Public Health/Preventive Health & 25 % were just clinicians.

So there is a dual problem. One with the Attitude of students that they just want to BUY a degree irrespective of the fact that what advantage they will get and where it will be applied and on the other hand the Abasyn University should think seriously about the registration of candidates for MPH. There should be a strict criteria which should be strictly followed and implemented. Otherwise these "MPH offsprings" will continue to shake the image of their respected Tutor and University as well.

As I always believe in " Not failure but........"

Regards

You have very rightly said. Even in the current class, most of the stuff are simply matriculate with dubious and perhaps fake graduation degrees earned from here and there, perhaps Darra Adam Khel, and since they failed in all other aspects of academic life, they opted to buy a MPH degree. Most of the others are Nurses, technicians, MD's, dispensers, veterinaries, homeopaths and Hakeems who have very low IQ and are not sure about what they want to do professionally in their lives. It can be rightly called the "Noah's Yatch"

As your motto says, Low Aim is a crime, I think It is an unforgivable crime. My forum is now read by colleagues as far as in USA and Canada, and the type of emails I am recieving about these creatures is such in volume that I can compile a book out of those emails.

Time and again I have asked them to get serious with their academic careers but now they openly say that they just want a degree on money and knowledge doesnt matter to them.

what can one do with them??????

My dear Dr Aziz

You sound very right because with privatization of education, specially in the Health Education, things have gone from bad to worse. Pakistan Medical Association in its report has cautioned that the health infrastructure in Pakistan has been damaged to awesome extents, and they cite privatization of Medical Education as a major causative factor for this.

Here at Baqai University, which is also a private University, at least in the Medical Education sector, we have a kept a very strict entry criteria for Public Health.

At least we dont welcome Dispensers, non-sector Nurses, Homeopaths and Arts Students. In our set up, 80% of enrolees are Doctors and 20% are Allied Professionals with at least 5 years documented experience in managerial positions/ technical positions in Public Health.

We also kick out those who perform at the level shown by these students whose result has been circulated world-wide.

Ands as you say that since they dont have any purpose or aim in life except to buy a degree, thats why such people never become serious with their academics. They are creatures beyond repair

And for Dr Kazmi, the urdu comment about these creatures is very very funny and hilarious. Hahahahahaha

I wish I could become Hitler for these low lifes

I have been looking at some of the comments regarding the results of MPH students. I want to express my views on a few points.

1. My first feeling is that Abasyn university's teachers are the only one who displays the result of their students in such a way that it is accessible by every one on the net. I have my reservations about it and think that the result list should be e-mailed to the students of the respected semesters so that the students know about their own result and their position in the class with regards to other students but no one else outside that class should know about it. University administration, in my opinion, has to ask for certain rules and regulation to be observed both by the teachers and the students.

2. Regarding the qualifications of the students at the time of admission; I think Abasyn University must be following some accepted rules and regulations laid down by the HEC and can't grant admission to every one who applies for admission to a certain discipline.

3. Regarding one of the remarks of Dr. Tahir Mehmood on admission criteria for MPH admission at Baqi University; well I do not know about those criteria; but I do know that Baqi university was the one which granted MBBS degrees to the students of one of the Private Medical Colleges of Peshawar, when this medical college was denied registration by the PMDC, at a time when it had only 40 bedded hospital, reflecting on the standard of Baqi university and its contribution towards medical education. Baqi University may have gained professonal heights since.

4. I have seen MPH students, both doctors and non-doctors, from other institutions working at the hospital, I am working at. I do not think that those students are superior to those of Abasyn's students in their knowledge.

5. Regarding the poor standards of private institutions contributing to lower standards of Medical education in the country I think for information of those who do not know about the nature of MPH Degree; it is basically an administrative qualification and not a medical qualification. No body with an MPH degree can practice medicine unless he or she has a basic medical qualification.

6. As far as the curriculum of any Discipline at any university whether private or public sector; national or international; I think the curriculum say for example that of MBA from Harvard university will be the same as that of any Pakistani public or private sector university, it is the way how the courses are administered by the university / teachers which gives credibility or weightage to that qualification. A good team leader is that one who gives inspiration to team of mediacores in such a way that it produces results. Achieving very high academic standards by Institutions require time and efforts on part of administration, teachers and students.

The only time when one starts at the top, is while digging a grave. Otherwise one always starts from the bottom. Similarly every new institution starts from the scratch and gradually makes its way up. It is both the faculty and students who make the destiny of an institution. The Administration can only lay down the rules and regulation.


7. Abasyn University is fortunate in the sense that it has a faculty who want to adopt new and modern ways of teaching and giving examinations and at the same time some of its students have excellent previous academic records. Together can make their institution distinguished from other institutions.

8. A comment regarding the method of examination, i.e. MCQs, while making MCQs all the MCQs are reviewed many times before GIVEN IN AN EXAMINATION. Also there are test MCQs in every examination. MCQs which are marked correctly or vice versa by vast majority of the students are eliminated from the examination.

9. I think this discussion of poor results, the remarks of teachers and counter remarks by some of the students is getting to an extent that the image of the institution, teachers and students is being adversely affected. It is better to make an end to it. Your institution will be what you are and it is always the institution which is important and not the individuals.

Dr. Mohammad Zahidullah