January 03, 2008	Thursday	Zilhaj 23, 1428

ISLAMABAD, Jan 2: The health ministry’s Departmental Develop-ment Working Party (DDWP) on Wednesday approved the health waste disposal project for Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) focusing on installation of incinerator at the hospital.

A similar incinerator would be installed at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), Karachi.

The PC-I for the installation of incinerator at Pims had been approved a couple of years ago, but the health ministry had sought its revision saying the most modern and environmentally safe incinerators should be installed.

The health ministry, however, made the approval of the PC-I subject to its certification by Pak Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA). The incinerator at Pims, besides serving the needs of the hospital, would also cater for the requirements of other hospitals in the capital.

Tons of hospital waste is daily produced in Islamabad, which is largely disposed of untreated.

Besides, over Rs62 million hospital waste disposal project for both the hospitals, the health ministry approved eight other projects valued at Rs230 million including the all important project, “Establishment of National Health Emergency Preparedness and Response (HEPR) Centre”.

Other projects include “Upgradation of Nursing School at Federal Government Services Hospital” at a cost of Rs39.927 million with the objective to provide improved teaching facilities to train about 200 nurses annually in the upgraded facility. The project will be completed within two years.

A project for “Establishment of National Resource Centre for Raw Materials of Traditional Medicine” at National Institute of Health (NIH) costing Rs28.069 million was also approved. The project is aimed at promoting cultivation/land propagation of medicinal and aromatic plants of therapeutic and commercial value, conducting feasibility studies for the cultivation of useful medicinal plants, and developing a national database of medicinal and aromatic plants.

Keeping in view the demand for a model allergy centre, the DDWP approved upgradation of Allergy Centre at NIH at a cost of Rs39.876 million that will take three years to complete.

For safe disposal of hospital waste, two projects, to be executed at Pims Islamabad and Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi with a combined cost of Rs62.686 million, were also approved, subject to clearance by the environmental protection agency.

The DDWP approved in principle a project “National Tobacco Control Programme” at a cost of Rs39.86 million that is aimed at reducing exposure to smoke at all places of work, public transport and public places through provision of specific guidelines. The project is also aimed at putting in place tobacco related disease surveillance system.

To prepare disaster risk management plans for each level of health care facilities including management of mass casualties and epidemics, a project for “Establishment of National Health Emergency Preparedness and Response (HEPR) Centre” in Islamabad costing Rs39.747 million was approved.

Other projects include setting up Federal Medical Centre at Lahore, Strengthening of Country Coordination Mechanism (CCM) for activities related to Global Fund to fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM).