PESHAWAR, March 9: Prominent cardiologist Prof Mohammad Rehman held a sumptuous dinner here on Friday night for national and international delegates attending the 15th Biennial International Congress of Cardiology.

The dinner, held at the professsor’s new 300-bed medical institute at Hayatabad Township, was attended besides the conference delegates, by local doctors, jurists, educationists and journalists. In his brief remarks on the occasion, he said his dream of giving his native province a valuable gift was realised in the shape of Rehman Medical Institute.

“RMI cannot only serve the people of NWFP but it is ideally located at the gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia,” he said. Prof Rehman, who served as a very successful cardiac surgeon in Karachi for 27 long years, said from the days of his student life serving humanity was his main motto and that is what he had done.

Gauging the mood of general public against the doctors community in the recent tussle with the government, many may not agree with his statement. But few can challenge the fact that building a high quality medical facility in Peshawar is anything other than that.

Prof Rehman, reading from a written English speech, said due to non-availability of a high quality medical facility in Peshawar, patients had to travel to Lahore and Karachi. He promised to provide thorough professional treatment at the institute.

Taking benefit of his institute’s proximity to Hayatabad Medical Complex, he even plans to upgrade his institute into an institute of medical sciences.

In a brief chat with The Statesman, the professor said he had initially started his institute with 50 beds which would be expanded later on.