LAHORE : Two more new courses for allied health professionals have been started in the Institute of Public Health (IPH) from the current year.
The courses of the dispenser and dental technician will consist of two years. This was announced in the Academic Council meeting chaired by Dean IPH Professor Dr. Zarfashan Tahir, here today. Academic council members Dr. Arshad Iqbal, Dr. Tanveer Bharwana, Dr. Shahid Mehmood, Dr. Saba Salim, Dr. Rabia Islam, Dr. Zahra Fayaz, Miss Fatima Syed, Dr. Mohsin Ranjha, Dr. Huda Sarwar, Dr. Uzair Mukhtar and Faisal Mushtaq participated in the meeting.
After the meeting, Dean Dr. Zarfashan said that the academic council unanimously approved the fees for both courses on an annual basis. Dr. Zarfashan Tahir said that since the dispenser's course is equal to FSC, the fee of the dispenser's course has been set at Rs25,200 per year, which includes admission fee, tuition fee, student welfare fund, library security (3,000 thousand refundable) and library fees. While the fee for Dental Technician course is fixed at 18,500 per annum. She said that the members of the academic council approved the facility of maximum two installments in one quarter for those students who cannot pay the lump sum fee. She informed that a committee would be constituted which will review each case of applicant and decide to provide this relaxation to the deserving students. Dean Institute of Public Health Dr. Zarfashan Tahir said that the fee of Diploma in Public Health (DPHT) Technologist course was Rs 7,500 which had not been increased for the last 13 years, considering all the circumstances, the academic council approved the DPHT fee to Rs18,500 per annum equal to that of the dental technician course, which will be applicable from the next academic year, however, the endorsement of the fee increase would be endorsed by the Department of Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education, Punjab. Dean IPH further said that the institute is facilitating technical courses in the medical sector to allied health professionals at very low fees as compared to the private sector with an aim to meet the shortage of qualified and trained manpower in hospitals and with a view to provide employment opportunities to the young generation.