18 April 2004	Sunday	27 Safar 1425

KARACHI, April 17: Federal Health Minister Muhammad Nasir Khan, on Saturday, laid the foundation stone of a building in the premises of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre , which will be housing a modern centre for neurosurgery.

The construction cost is expected around Rs60 million. The total cost of the project, however, will be more than Rs450 million. The covered area of the building will be about 59,000sq- feet. It will have 70-odd beds for patients suffering from head injuries or brain tumours.

There will be three operation theatres in the building, which will be called the M.A. Rangoonwala Centre for Neurosurgery. The Rangoonwala family has donated generously for the project that will also have inputs from public sector.

The staff will be provided by the JPMC and the department of neurosurgery, headed by Prof Rashid Jooma, is in consultation with the federal health secretary for the provision of equipment for the centre. The project is expected to get completed in the first half of 2006, Prof Jooma told some newsmen after the foundation-stone laying ceremony.

Speaking at the ceremony, Federal Health Minister M. Nasir Khan pointed out that his ministry had provided Rs600 million to the JPMC for its projects.

"Now that it has the money, it's up to the JPMC administration to launch different projects to change the face of their hospital," he said and urged the JPMC's director to launch the projects as soon as possible so that the patients notice the changes in the very near future.

He praised Dr Farooq Sattar for helping the JPMC administration in ridding its premises of encroachers.

Mr Khan observed that from the very beginning, the JPMC should have built a wall around its 900 acres. "Had this been done in the early days of the hospital, 20.66 acres of its prime land would not have been encroached upon," said the minister.

Even though the government had increased the budgetary allocation by 30 to 35 per cent, the total amount being spent in health sector was still quite low, he remarked.

"Pakistan spends about 0.9 per cent of its income on health. In comparison, the US, the UK and Sweden spend from 10 to 15 per cent of the GNP on health. This clearly shows that we are not spending enough on health," he said.

He was of the opinion that the Pakistani doctors were as good as any other in the world. "The Pakistani doctors have done usproud wherever they have worked, be it the Middle East, the US or Europe."

Appreciating the contribution made by the Rangoonwala family, the minister said: "You have not only given a great gift to the people of Karachi but also to humanity at large."

He said that the onus was now on the JPMC's staff to rededicate themselves so that high-quality care could be provided to people who sought their assistance.

JPMC director Prof Kazi Abdul Shakoor revealed that seven projects had been launched by his administration with Rs160 million that had been provided by the federal health ministry. He urged the doctors of his hospital to help improve the quality of car provided by them.

Prof Rashid Jooma said that his aim was to build a brand new facility where at least 70 patients could be looked after in the manner prescribed by international health agencies.

In his brief speech, Tariq Rangoonwala said that by donating some money to the JPMC, he had not done anything extraordinary. "We are doing what we should be doing. We are just discharging our duties," he remarked.