ICT to get cancer hospital as CDWP approves Rs 2000m

• Senate body recommends another PIMS-type hospital in ICT to facilitate patients
• Dr Amjad invites Senate committee to visit, hold next meeting at PIMS

ISLAMABAD: Senate’s Standing Committee on Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) was informed on Monday that the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) had approved Rs 2000 million for the establishment of a cancer hospital in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).

The cancer hospital was the project of the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Medical University, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Executive Director Dr Amjad informed the committee in a detailed briefing.

The committee meeting was held here under the chairmanship of Senator Dr Ashok Kumar which also attended by Yousaf Badini, Asad Ali Junejo, Mushahid Hussain Syed, Shafiq Tareen, Sajjad Hussain Turi, Nighat Mirza, Saadia Abbasi, Samina Saeed and officials from the PIMS.

The committee suggested the cancer hospital should be established at the National Institute of Health (NIH) Hospital as it has enough land. He also informed the Senate body that PC-1 for the establishment of the Liver Transplant at PIMS has been approved.

Lauding the efforts for improving the medical services at PIMS Hospital, the committee chairman said that Dr Amjad had changed their minds about the hospital’s performance. Dr Amjad invited the Senate body to visit the hospital and hold the next meeting at PIMS.

In his briefing, Dr Amjad said that around 1.2 million patients had been checked at PIMS during the years 2017-18. He informed the committee that PIMS did not have fully functioned Oncology Department at the hospital; adding only one doctor of the said department was available.

However, he said that all type of operations were being conducted at the PIMS. He said that the eight renal transplants had been conducted so far. Sharing the details, he said that currently, 1150 posts were vacant at the hospital which would be filled by the incoming government.

He said that current budget of PIMS was Rs 4245 million. On the request of the PIMS chief, the committee recommended the Public Works Department (PWD) to complete the construction work at the hospital within eight months to continue the system smoothly. He also told the body that eight kidney transplants had been conducted since last one and half month at PIMS.

Around 45 beds were working at PIMS emergency, he said, adding that new emergency of the hospital had also been functioned. Giving details about the cardiac centre at PIMS, he said that stents and medicines were being provided freely to the patients. Presently, more than 100 ventilators were working at the hospital, he said.

At the end, the committee also recommended that another PIMS type hospital should be established in ICT as earlier hospital is unable to bear the burden of patients.