Saudi Arabia de-recognises MD, MS programmes of Pakistan

Jeddah: Saudi Arabia along with other Arab countries has de-recognised PG medical degree programmes, MD and MS courses of Pakistan by removing it from the eligibility list of the highest paid tier.

The countries have also asked several Pakistani doctors in the kingdom to be ready to leave or be deported. The move by the kingdom has reportedly rendered hundreds of highly-qualified medics jobless, Dawn newspaper reported. It said that a majority of them are in Saudi Arabia who have been told to leave or be ready for deportation.

The Saudi Health Ministry, while rejecting Pakistan’s MS/MD degree, said it lacked structured training programme — a mandatory requirement to hire medics against important positions.

Most of the affected doctors were hired by a team of the Saudi Health Ministry in 2016 when it conducted interviews in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad after inviting applications online.

One of the affected doctors told the daily that the decision “brought embarrassment for them” since the same degree programme offered by India, Egypt, Sudan and Bangladesh was acceptable in the kingdom and other countries.

The daily said that it obtained copies of service termination letters of several doctors issued by the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS).

“Your application for professional qualification has been rejected. Reason is that your master degree from Pakistan is not acceptable according to the SCFHS regulations,” read a letter.

Some of the affected doctors and senior health officials in Pakistan blamed the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) for “damaging their career”, the report said, quotes IANS.

Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain are also following the Saudi government's move to de-recognise Pakistani medical programmes, the report said.

University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Javed Akram, however, said that “the MS/MD degrees are enriched with dynamic… and structured curriculum… at par excellence of international standards designed by the World Federation of Medical Education”.

Dean (academics) of the CPSP, Prof Dr Ghulam Mustafa Arain, rejected the allegations levelled by the affected doctors and said the institution “can’t think of degrading any medical education programme of Pakistan abroad”.