ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: President Dr. Arif Alvi has said that the burden of disease on our fragile health system could significantly be reduced by adopting the preventive health care system against communicable and non-communicable diseases by promoting a healthy lifestyle, regular exercise, observing cleanliness and enlarging our diet spread which, he said, would reduce the burden on the curative health system as well as on the patients.
While addressing the convocation ceremony of Foundation University College of Dentistry in Islamabad on Tuesday, the president stressed the importance of creating awareness about the early detection of illness and disease, promoting preventive means to avoid disease by adopting a healthy lifestyle and by treating their patients with the utmost care, kindness and compassion which, he said, made a huge difference in reassuring the patients and resolving their health issues.
The president emphasized that oral ailments could be significantly decreased by just educating the masses on the importance of practising oral hygiene and oral healthcare.
Dr. Arif Alvi said that maintenance of healthy teeth throughout life would prevent contracting other diseases as well and enable people to lead happy and healthy life.
The president regretted that almost 50 percent of females leave the medical profession either after or before marriage which was a huge loss to the country and society. He called for steps to reverse this trend and urged the parents to support their daughters towards continuing their profession.
President Arif Alvi emphasized that the government must take steps to provide a secure and enabling environment and create opportunities for them to perform their official duties online or on flexible timings and schedules to enable them to work and raise their families comfortably.
The president said that there was a need to reduce the stress level in society by educating the masses regarding handling and avoiding fake news, respecting the privacy of individuals, and portraying the messages and the statements in their true context. He said that statements and sentences quoted out of reference and context add to the confusion and anxiety in society and, therefore, should be handled effectively.
The president congratulated the young graduates on the start of their professional life and advised them to keep pursuing knowledge and be humble in their personal and professional lives.
President Arif Alvi also urged all medical professionals to treat their patients with empathy as they were part of a noble profession whose primary duty was to reduce the suffering of mankind.
Earlier, the president gave away medals and certificates to distinguished graduates.
The Director of the Foundation University School of Health Sciences Major General (retd) Dr. Imran Fazal presented the annual report of the university.
The ceremony was attended by the faculty members, graduating students and their parents in large numbers.
