From three beds to full-fledged neurosurgery dept

PESHAWAR: Started with a three-bed facility in January 2017, the Neurosurgery Department has now become a full-fledged department at the Mardan Medical Complex (MMC), which is providing state-of-the-art services to patients suffering from neurological disorders.

The facility was initially set up in the Orthopaedics Department of the hospital as most of the people in the hospital were largely unaware of the importance of this specialty. This achievement earned Prof Dr Naeemul Haq the distinction of being the pioneer of modern neurosurgery in Mardan.

There were only three beds in the orthopaedics ward when Dr Naeemul Haq joined as assistant professor neurosurgery, according to officials. They said there was no operation theatre and a proper Outpatient Department.

“I remember when Dr Naeemul Haq would visit different offices for help to establish the well-equipped department. At one point, he had almost lost hope but stayed on despite all odds for the benefit of the patients,” an official of the hospital told The News.

He said Dr Naeemul Haq’s commitment and dedication helped him establish one of the best neurosurgery facilities in the province.“The journey was tough, but his struggle paid off in the end and neurosurgery got a separate ward in the hospital,” the official added.

Now the Neurosurgery Department has 36 beds and all neurosurgery procedures, some of them extremely complicated, are performed with ease.This is not less than a blessing for the people hailing from Mardan, Charsadda, Swabi, Buner and other districts in Malakand Division.

Since its inception, all major surgeries such as brain tumours and even complex procedures, including skull base tumours and tumours of posterior fossa are now performed at the Neurosurgery Department that also started paediatric neurosurgery and the complex procedure of spine surgery.

Prof Naeemul Haq has trained a team of qualified neurosurgeons.In 2021, the Neurosurgery Department at MMC became the first facility in the public sector in KP that installed the endoscopic spine surgery system. In 2022, they started neuro endoscopy.

In November 2022, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan (CPSP) recognised the department for the postgraduate training of Fellow College of Physicians and Surgeons (FCPS) due to the hard work of its dedicated team.

Prof Dr Naeemul Haq was the first CPSP approved supervisor of the department.When reached, Dr Naeemul Haq said whatever he had done was purely for the benefit of the patients. He said he was happy that he and his colleagues worked together at the state-of-the-art Neurosurgery Department at MMC.

“With eight trainee medical officers, we are offering round the clock emergency services, and patients are no longer required to go to Peshawar,” said Dr Naeemul Haq.He said the Neurosurgery Department was always packed with patients from the nearby districts.

“The department will soon be recognised for FCPS training in spine surgery. One of our trainees has been selected for training in Birmingham, United Kingdom, the only one from KP,” he said.

Besides Dr Naeemul Haq, Dr Ishaq Khan and Dr Gohar Ali are also serving as supervisors in the department.Prof Dr Mumtaz Ali is considered the founder of modern neurosurgery in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He trained many neurosurgeons, who are now serving in various hospitals in the province and abroad.