British Govt To Be Contacted If Nawaz Does Not Return: Dr Yasmin

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 30th Sep, 2020 ) :Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin on Wednesday said that the British government would be contacted if Nawaz Sharif did not come back.

Addressing a press conference to present the two years performance of the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department and the Specialized Healthcare & Medical education Department held at 90 Shahrah-e-Quaid-e-Azam here, she said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had cleared that Nawaz Sharif would be brought back.

She said that Nawaz Sharif was disqualified during his own government. She said the NAB was set up by the PMLN's own government.

She said that bail of Shahbaz Sharif was rejected by the court but the government was blamed for that by the opposition.

She said when former prime minister Nawaz Sharif came for treatment, his treatment was started immediately after which his health improved. If his health had not improved, he would not have been able to travel abroad. So far no report of platelets of Nawaz Sharif had been received. "Nawaz Sharif expressed full satisfaction on his treatment and we offered him services for cardiac treatment but he preferred his own physician," she added. She said that Prime Minister Imran Khan was updated regularly about the situation of Nawaz Sharif who had promised to come back after his treatment from abroad and he reneged from his promise later.

She said, "I personally contacted Dr. Adnan, the personal physician of Nawaz Sharif, and asked for sharing of reports but these were not sent to us. It was his duty to share these reports. As per information, the treatment was to be started on February 26 but insisted that treatment will be started only after his daughter arrived. As other children were already there, he should have started treatment. As he is the leader of a political party, he should come back to continue politics. More importantly, a board of 10 doctors was constituted. All reports were true and I fully trust my doctors. I am sure, Nawaz Sharif's health is much better and if he is okay, he must come back." The Minister said it was very important to present the two years performance of the Health department. She said the Corona Pandemic had brought the economies of developed countries to its knees.

The Minister said, "In the last 24 hours, more than 12,500 tests of COVID-19 were performed in Punjab. The testing capacity has been increased manifold since the pandemic began. The government has enhanced focus on the implementation of SOPs and the educational institutions have been opened." She said that the World Health Organization had specifically praised Pakistan for its efforts in controlling the coronavirus pandemic. In the last 8 months, steps were taken on war footings. "By the start of the pandemic, we had capacity of 300 to 400 tests in Punjab," she said and added that as per guidelines by the WHO, 18 new BSL-3 Labs were developed in the province out of whom 9 were developed in Lahore alone. During the pandemic, arrangements for 20,000 patients were made, she said and added that the number of ventilators was enhanced. As compared to other provinces, the mortality rate in Punjab had remained very low.

When Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government took over, 50 per cent seats were lying vacant in Punjab, the minister said and added that for the first time in history 32,000 healthcare professionals were recruited through transparent process. She said that on every level, merit was observed and their details were issued online.

Dr Yasmin Rashid said, "When we started, around 50,000 beds were available in Public Sector Hospitals. Now we have increased the capacity of hospitals to a great extent.

The two departments were operating with liabilities of Rs 32 billion. We have developed the department on directions and vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar. We are working to achieve the targets set by the Sustainable Development Goals. In different districts of Punjab, seven Mother and Child hospitals are being developed. The largest of these hospitals is 600 bedded Mother and Child Hospital at Ganga Ram which will be fully functional by the end of 2021. In the Public Sector, no hospital of this class has been built. In the past, no such hospital was ever made having Gynacology, Uro Gynacology and Natal medicines facilities. In this hospital, neonatal nursery facility will be available." The minister said, "Mother and Child Hospitals with 200 beds are being developed in Mianwali, Sialkot, Rajanpur, Attock Layyah and Bahawalnagar. In the past nursing capacity and performance was never a priority. In the five Mother and Child Hospitals, Nursing Colleges are being built. In Sialkot and Lahore, Nursing Colleges are already being set up. In Multan, Nishter 2, a large 500 bedded hospital is being developed which will be completed by 2022." Elaborating further, Dr Yasmin said, "The Ganga Ram Mother and Child Hospital will cost around Rs. 7 billion. A lot of funds have been released to improve mother and child health. In Gujrat, state-of-the-art Mother and Child Hospital is also in the pipeline. In Dera Ghazi Khan, a new cardiology hospital is being developed. So far we have Cardiology institutions in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi." She said that Sehat Insaf Cards had been distributed in all 36 districts of Punjab, adding, "So far we have distributed cards to 5.2 million families. Over 2 lakh people have availed the facility. Patients have utilized the cards to get treatment of cardiac, dialysis and other diseases." The Minister said that the Prime Minister had emphasized Mother and Child Health in his first speech. She said, "In eight districts, BHUs have been upgraded to 24/7 models. More BHUS have been set up after which the BHUs have increased to 1280. In the next ADP, all 2500 BHUs will be made 24/7. We are trying that all citizens must get health facilities on their doorstep. Pregnant women are transferred to public sector hospitals through free ambulance service in case of emergency." She said, "The Health department is providing free services to hundreds of thousands of patients through vertical programs. In the budget, Rs. 11 billion have been reserved for vertical programs. The Rawalpindi Institute of Urology, that has been under construction since 2012, will be made functional in the next 45 days. The Wazirabad Institute of Cardiology has been made fully functional. The scope of this institution is being enhanced." She said the department had developed a system for hospital waste. In 26 districts, incinerators had been set up. The district hospitals are working in coordination with Teaching Hospitals. In the Specialized Healthcare department, the hospital waste would be disposed of through microwave technology and its PC-1 is being developed.

The minister said that Teaching Hospitals faced a big problem of regular faculty which had been overcome by the strategic intervention. The Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department deserved appreciation for expediting the promotion process by holding fortnightly meetings of Promotion Committee for Professors, Assistant Professor and Doctors, she added.

The Minister was flanked by Secretary Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Captain (Retd) Usman Younis and Special Secretary Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department Silwat Saeed.