Islamabad: As many as 120 paramedics and allied health professionals from Balochistan have completed an intensive three-month training programme at the Health Services Academy (HSA), Islamabad, and are returning home to serve communities across the province, particularly in remote and underserved areas.
The healthcare workers were trained in intensive care, neonatal intensive care, emergency medicine, anaesthesia and cardiac care under a capacity-development programme jointly undertaken by HSA and the Project Management Unit of the Government of Balochistan.
Officials said the initiative was designed to strengthen Balochistan’s health workforce by equipping paramedics and allied health professionals with practical skills required to provide specialised and emergency care at hospitals and health facilities where trained personnel remain in short supply.
The first batch, trained between June and August 2026, completed the programme this week, with certificates presented to participants at a farewell ceremony organised by HSA in Islamabad.
Balochistan Health Minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar said the training represented an important investment in the province’s health workforce, particularly for areas where shortages of appropriately trained paramedical and allied health staff affected the delivery of specialised healthcare.
He said the trained personnel would now return to Balochistan and use their newly acquired skills for patients in their respective areas, describing human-resource development as essential for improving healthcare in the province’s remote districts.
MNA Nawabzada Mir Jamal Khan Raisani, who attended the ceremony as chief guest, distributed certificates among the participants and said trained healthcare workers had a critical role in improving services for communities across Balochistan.
He said strengthening the skills of young healthcare professionals was particularly important for Balochistan, where geography, long distances between population centres and shortages of trained human resources continued to pose serious challenges to healthcare delivery.
Gilgit-Baltistan Health Minister Iqbal Hassan attended the ceremony as guest of honour and spoke about health-system priorities in Gilgit-Baltistan, another region where difficult terrain, scattered populations and shortages of skilled personnel pose challenges to access to quality healthcare.
HSA Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Shahzad Ali Khan said the academy intended to expand its role in strengthening the healthcare workforce in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, particularly through programmes designed around the requirements of underserved and hard-to-reach areas.
He said HSA would continue supporting provincial and regional health systems through capacity building, research and policy support, with greater emphasis on developing healthcare personnel capable of responding to local needs.
Officials said the programme, titled “Capacity Development Programme for Paramedics & Allied Health Professionals of Balochistan”, was designed as a practical intervention rather than a conventional classroom-based training course.
During the three months, participants underwent classroom teaching, simulation-based training and supervised clinical practice to develop skills required for managing critically ill patients and responding to medical emergencies.
The inclusion of ICU, neonatal ICU, emergency, anaesthesia and cardiac-care training was considered particularly important as these services depend heavily on competent paramedics, technicians and other allied health professionals working alongside doctors and nurses.
HSA Project Director Nadeem Sajjad Kayani presented an overview of the programme and the experience of its first batch, highlighting the training model and the skills imparted to participants during their stay in Islamabad.
Trainees also shared their experiences and success stories during a session titled “Voices of Transformation”, explaining how the programme had strengthened their clinical skills and prepared them for greater responsibilities after returning to their respective health facilities.
The ceremony was attended by senior officials from Balochistan, representatives of the provincial Health Directorate, the vice chancellor of Bolan Medical University and other health-sector officials.
Ends