RAWALPINDI, Pakistan: A team of UK based doctors on Monday successfully placed a device in 20 children without surgery to open their blocked arteries at Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC).
According to RIC Chief Executive Officer Major General (Retd) Azhar Mehmood Kiani, team of doctors including heart experts from UK’s Laster hospital Dr David Karimi performed the surgeries of the children.
The surgeries were performed at a cost of Rs One million, paid by the Punjab government.
General Kiani further said that an Electrophysiology department has been set up at (RIC) to treat children suffering from by birth heart problems which will start working in February, “I am really happy that the poor will not have to bear heavy expenses for surgeries in private hospitals. Hopefully, they will have the same treatment at their doorsteps from now onwards,” said Dr Kiami.
He informed that we have requested Punjab government to increase the budget from Rs 1500 million to Rs 1800 million for upgradation of various departments and services.
The veteran heart specialist continues to provide state-of-the-art heart care to patients irrespective of their ability to pay.
The CEO said specialist doctors are providing treatment to the patients round-the-clock adding that 1000 open heart surgeries and 1400 Aniogoplasty are being carried out annually. He said machinery for the hospital has been imported from Germany and Japan and beds from Italy.
Dr Azhar said the hospital has all laboratory test facilities like ECO, blood test and X-ray. He said most modern X-ray system has been installed in the hospital where instead of X-ray film, the X-ray is taken through CR system and the report goes in the laptop of the doctor simultaneously for providing further treatment.
General Kiani said that prominent heart surgeons including Dr Hasnat, Dr Kareem and Dr Manzoor Ahmed from London are imparting training to the doctors and other Para medical staff of the Institute.
He said it is the only hospital in the twin cities where patients from Rawalpindi division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan are benefiting from treatment facilities.
Replying to a question, he said the young children suffering from heart ailments no longer go to India as the hospital has hired the services of specialist doctors for treating them.
He said the ratio of death from cardiac arrests could be minimized by preventive measures. Elaborating he Said that Hypertension, Diabetes, Smoking, Obesity, use of Alcohol, Physical inactivity and stress are the most common causes of increasing heart disses in the country, which can be avoided through balanced diet, regular exercise and regular checkup.
He said that by taking preventive measures some 80,000 deaths from heart diseases could be avoided every year in the country.
He said prevention is the best way to control increasing number of deaths due to heart diseases.
Source: APP
