Brigadier Dr Aamer Ikram new NIH chief

Islamabad: Brigadier Dr Aamer Ikram of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi, has been made the National Institute of Health executive director.

His appointment has been made for three years on deputation. A microbiologist, Brigadier Dr Aamer has replaced Dr Mukhtar Ahmad. The NIH had been waiting for a permanent head for seven years.

Recently, the Ministry of Health Services and Regulation, which has the administrative control of the NIH, invited applications for the post in a bid to fill it on permanent basis, got the interest of 20 public health experts but didn’t get a suitable man from among them. For that reason, it decided to go for the appointment of deputationist to the key post.

The NIH has been involved in multi-disciplinary public health-related activities like diagnostic services, research and production of biologicals for more than 40 years.It is a World Health Organisation collaborating centre for viral diagnostics and regional reference laboratory for polio in addition to being a national reference centre for diagnosis of Influenza. It also works as the National Appellate Laboratory for quality control of drugs and is the public analyst laboratory for the quality control of food for the federal territory.