Punjab to hire retired teachers in medical colleges over staff shortage

LAHORE: With an acute shortage of teaching faculty in public medical colleges in Punjab, the state government has now resolved to hire retired teachers on contract in important departments in the province.

The initiative has been taken amid dozens of government-run medical colleges saying they face a critical shortage of teachers in core subjects such as cardiac and paediatric surgery, pulmonology, oncology, cardiology, biochemistry, forensic medicine, and anaesthesia.

In order to make the emergency recruitment smoother, the upper age limit for contract appointments of retired teachers has been increased to 65 years as per an official notification by the Punjab Health Department.

The Department of Health has officially instructed all 36 provincial government medical colleges and teaching hospitals to finalize the recruitment process by June 30.

Teachers would be hired in at least 12 key departments, with special emphasis on filling associate professor posts in the departments where there are the most severe staff shortages.

A letter to the medical institutions from the Punjab Health Department states that the contracts of the retired teachers will automatically lapse with the appointment of permanent faculty members.