‘Thalassaemia centres to be set up at divisional level’

LAHORE

Punjab Minister for Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Khawaja Salman Raffique has said that a single thalassaemic patient is a big test for the family and legislation is now inevitable to control the disease in society. He said that thalassaemia centers would be established at every divisional level.

He expressed the views at a concluding session of a training workshop for hematologists on thalassaemia at Fatima Jinnah Medical University/ Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, according to a handout issued on Saturday. Salman Raffique said that without switching over to the prevention side, treatment facilities would always be insufficient. "There is a need to adopt the principle of prevention is better than cure for the purpose and public awareness is essential," he added. Besides, Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Sardar Fakhar Imam, Medical Superintendent Sir Ganga Hospital Dr. Nauman Matloob, Director Punjab Thalassemia Prevention Programme Dr. Shabnam and hematologists from different parts of the country including Quetta, Multan, Rawalpindi and other cities were also present.

Prof. Fakhar Imam stressed the need for collaboration among institutions for capacity building and professional upgradation of human resource. He said that human resource was the real asset to any nation.

Khawaja Salman Raffique said the Punjab government had taken different initiatives to decrease the workload on tertiary care hospitals and to provide medical facilities at local level. The minister said that DHQ and THQ hospitals were being revamped and upgraded in the province. "CT Scan facility will also be provided at every DHQ hospital by the end of this fiscal year. The health insurance scheme has been launched in Punjab and only in Rahim Yar Khan more than 500,000 poor and deserving families are getting benefit from the facility,"he added. He said that 18 private hospitals in the district had been paneled to provide medical cover to the registered families. "Moreover, the government is going to launch a joint venture with private hospitals as the hospitals attached with private medical colleges are bound to provide consultancy and beds to poor patients under the PMDC rules," he added.

The minister said the government would give grant-in-aid to the hospitals for providing treatment facilities including medicines which would help redress the issue of availability of beds for patients. "On directions of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the government is procuring quality medicines from multinational and national pharmaceutical companies and in future a procurement company would be set up with the collaboration of the Turkish Ministry of Health. Modern warehouses for storing medicines would also be established where all the system would base on IT for ensuring the provision of quality medicines to patients," he elaborated. 

He said that a five-bed Intensive Care Unit (ICU) along with ventilators would be established in each district headquarter hospital during the current financial year. "Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif is personally monitoring all development schemes and presides over meetings to review progress every week," he added.

Appreciating hard working doctors, nurses in public sector hospitals, Salman Raffique said that all  professionals attached to the health sector were providing best healthcare facilities according to  available resources and acknowledgment of their services was also essential.

retires: Nursing Punjab Director General Nusrat Saeeda has retired from her service.

According to a press release issued here on Saturday, a farewell lunch was hosted in honour of Nusrat Saeeda which was attended by noted personalities of Health Department and a large number of nurses.

Addressing the participants, Lahore General Hospital Nursing Superintendent Deputy Chief Farhat Mahboob said that Nusrat Saeeda rendered great services throughout her career.