PESHAWAR: The first-ever dedicated 300-bed Peshawar Children Hospital in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is yet to become operational due to delay by communication and works department to hand over its building to the authorities concerned.

The federal government started Khyber Institute of Child Health (KICH) and its affiliated children hospital 14 years ago which was supposed to open in three years but still the chances of its becoming operational are dim.

A senior member of Pakistan Paediatrics Association (PPA) told this scribe that they were expecting that the hospital would be launched on Sept 1. “In spite of receiving 100pc cost of work, there are many things to complete. The communication and works department seems reluctant in handing over the building to relevant authorities for reasons best known to it,” he said.

He said that paediatricians were pushing through many sides with the hope that sense would prevail and the first children hospital would start work. All the provinces, except Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, have more than one children hospitals.

C&W dept yet to hand over building to relevant authority

“If communication and works department leaves it and operational funds are released, we can make the hospital operational within one month,” said the PPA member.

Sources in health department said that they had requested an annual operational fund of Rs2.9 billion for the current year and Rs500 million one time for buying power generators. “Uninterrupted power supply is not a requirement but mandatory for the hospital,” they said.

However, handing over the building is main demand as for the last eight months they had been hearing to get the building in one month but that month was not coming and as result, the starting of the facility was in limbo, they said.

“The communication and works department has received all funds as per PC-1 but their tasks remain far from completion. Also, authorities have requested Rs4 billion for operational cost of the hospital and a summary is in process of approval,” said sources.

The hospital has been declared as medical teaching institution (MTI) on the demand of PPA. The status of MTI, according to sources, was demanded with the hope that things would get fast-tracked as its Board of Governors (BoG) would take decisions independently without bureaucratic control.

“However, it is a new hospital and requires funds. It cannot be run like other well-established and old hospitals that have been given MTI status and are now run by their respective BoG,” they said.

According to sources, the start of the hospital will be tiresome as at this stage. The hospital requires funds from government but when it becomes functional, it will start receiving its share of funds released to all the MTIs.

They said that the hospital had its own BoG with its members having a lot of experience but it was looking towards the government for want of funds.

Officials said that KICH and Children Hospital were desperately needed to act as an umbrella for hospitals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The hospital would be producing trained paediatricians, nurses and paramedics and would impart training to healthcare workers in paediatrics, they added.

They said that the facility would open doors of postgraduate training to doctors in sub-specialties for which medics, who could afford, presently visited other provinces. They said that with the passing of time, the hospital would become a centre of excellence not only for KP but also for healthcare providers from other provinces.

They said that children, who were half of the province’s population, required the best healthcare services. “Once it becomes operational, donor organisations will help to improve its services as they are interested in enhancing child health services,” they added.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2026