Punjab Minister for Primary & Secondary Health Khawaja Imran Nazir has said that the top priority of the government is to protect the people from the diseases and to create a healthy society in Punjab for which solid steps have been taken at all levels.
Talking to the media on the occasion of ‘Health Awareness Walk’, Kh Imran Nazir said that after setting up two separate health departments, special focus was on the prevention of disease programme.
He said that under the leadership of Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif and due to his personal interest, health sector in Punjab was tremendously improving due to which quality health services were being provided to the people of Punjab as well as the level of awareness among the masses regarding health has also increased.
The Health Awareness Walk held from Liberty Chowk to Hussain Chowk Gulberg here on Sunday was organised by the Health Department in connection with district health conventions which are being held across the province from December 2 to 11. Lahore Deputy Commissioner Sumair Ahmed Syed, Health CEO Dr Yadullah, deputy district officers, lady health workers, dengue staff and a large number of people from the civil society participated in the walk.
Health Minister Imran Nazir and DC Sumair Ahmed Syed addressed the participants and distributed leaflets among the bikers and drivers on the roadside.
The health minister announced that working has been started to regularise the contractual dengue workers and steps were being taken to revise pay scales and service structure to the lady health workers and lady health visitors. He said that good news for the workers would come soon.
Imran Nazir said that holding of health conventions at district level across the province was to create awareness among the people and to sensitize them regarding the tremendous developments and achievements being done in the health sector.
He further said that collective efforts by the government, people and the health workers were essential to eradicate diseases from the society and people could be protected from falling ill. The minister revealed that first time in Punjab revamping of 125 DHQ and THQ hospitals was being carried out at a cost of Rs 36 billion. Similarly, hepatitis clinics were being set up in 100 DHQ and THQ hospitals. Moreover, Rs 12 billion were being spent to provide quality medicines in these hospitals, he added.
He disclosed that medicines for hepatitis, AIDS and tuberculosis were being delivered to the patients at their homes through courier service free of cost. Mobile health units were providing healthcare services to the people of far flung areas and more MHUs were being included in the system, he said.
He said that Punjab Hepatitis Ordinance 2017 has been launched and enforced immediately. Moreover, Safe Mother Ambulance Service has been introduced in the rural areas to save lives of pregnant women and to provide them immediate health services. State-of-the-art drugs laboratories have been established in Lahore, Multan, Bahawalpur and Rawalpindi. On the other hand, CT scan machines were being installed at all the DHQ hospitals besides, including hepatitis birth doze and ROTA virus vaccines in the EPI programme for children.
He said that Punjab was the only province which has introduced hepatitis birth doze and Rota virus in the immunization programme. On this occasion, the officers of the department and health workers reaffirmed that they would fight against the diseases with a national spirit to establish disease-free Punjab and the participants chanted slogans of “Pakistan Zindabad” enthusiastically.
