The Ministry of Health has ordered an immediate, comprehensive fire safety audit of all government-run hospitals across the country. The directive follows a string of recent electrical-related blazes that exposed critical gaps in facility maintenance and emergency preparedness.
Health Secretary Nadeem Ahmed issued the order late Tuesday, giving provincial health departments 48 hours to initiate inspections. Every public hospital must now verify the functionality of fire suppression systems, emergency exits, and electrical wiring—the latter being the primary culprit in at least three major hospital fires this year.
“We aren’t waiting for another report,” said a senior official at the ministry. “Every facility head is now personally responsible for the safety of their wards. If the equipment doesn’t work, it needs to be replaced before the weekend.”
The urgency is fueled by recent data showing that nearly 60% of government health facilities have not undergone a formal fire safety inspection in over three years. Many hospitals rely on aging electrical grids that were never designed to support the heavy machinery and high-voltage diagnostic tools now in constant use.
Beyond the hardware, the audit requirements include a mandatory review of staff training. Hospital administrations must prove that nursing and security teams have practiced evacuation drills within the last six months. Previous investigations into hospital fires found that while some facilities had extinguishers on-site, staff often didn’t know how to operate them during a crisis.
The ministry expects the final audit reports by the end of the month. Facilities found to be in violation of basic safety standards face immediate suspension of funding for non-essential upgrades until the fire hazards are rectified.
For patients and their families, the audit is a long-overdue response to a systemic risk. Whether this move translates into lasting infrastructure improvements or remains a temporary bureaucratic exercise depends entirely on the transparency of these upcoming inspections.
