The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has decided to outsource another 32 underperforming public-sector hospitals to private organizations, with the latest phase expected to be completed by August 24.
Eight private organizations have been shortlisted to manage 21 Category-D hospitals, five Rural Health Centers, and six Category-B and C hospitals across the province.
The Khyber Health Foundation is currently assessing the shortlisted organizations before signing final agreements. The evaluation includes their financial strength, technical capacity, and experience in managing healthcare facilities. A third-party audit is also being conducted to determine their suitability.
Under the new outsourcing strategy, private organizations will be required to manage hospitals in both developed and remote areas instead of receiving facilities only in relatively better-performing or urban locations.
For example, an organization assigned a hospital in Abbottabad may also be given responsibility for a facility in the merged tribal districts.
A total of 34 hospitals have been advertised for outsourcing, while the province has been divided into four regions to streamline the process.
Private operators will remain accountable to district administrations, district health officers, and the provincial Health Department. Their performance will be regularly assessed, and action may be taken against organizations that fail to provide satisfactory services.
The government will provide quarterly budgets to private partners for running the hospitals. However, the release of funds will be linked to performance assessments based on reports prepared by district administrations and health authorities.
Under the agreements, private operators will also be required to ensure the availability of specialist doctors, diagnostic facilities, medicines, and uninterrupted emergency services.
Hospitals will be required to have specialists including physicians, surgeons, ophthalmologists, ENT specialists, and gynecologists. Private operators will also be responsible for repairing faulty medical equipment without unnecessary delays.
The Khyber Health Foundation has been outsourcing underperforming government hospitals to private organizations with healthcare expertise since 2017.
So far, 18 public hospitals have been handed over to private operators, most of them in the merged tribal districts. Once the latest phase involving 32 hospitals is completed, the number of government hospitals operating under private management will increase to 50.
Officials said the outsourcing policy was introduced mainly because of inadequate facilities, staff absenteeism, and poor diagnostic services, including shortcomings in X-ray and pathology facilities.
According to the Health Foundation, hospitals outsourced during the first phase showed improvements in patient care and service delivery, encouraging the government to expand the model.
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