KARACHI, June 24: Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan here on Friday laid the foundation of the Sarwar Jehan Zubeiri Liver Institute, first of its kind in the country, being established by the Dow University of Health Sciences.

Speaking on the occasion, the governor said the Sindh government, acknowledging the fact that hepatitis is a serious health problem in the country, has incorporated treatment and prevention of liver diseases among its top priority health care schemes.

Appreciating the initiative taken by DUHS, the governor said although liver diseases are being dealt with by medical departments of various government hospitals, need was still being felt for a separate institute for liver diseases.

“A separate institute of the magnitude of Sarwar Zuberi Liver Institute is very much required,” the governor said, responding to a report presented by the institute’s director, Dr Rana Hameed, indicating the fast increasing pressure of Hepatitis B and C patients at the small liver centre operational at Civil Hospital Karachi for the last one year.

Dr Ibad reminded that intensity of the scenario in the context of incidence of hepatitis has also been realised at the national level and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has already constituted a task force to handle the issues related with hepatitis.

The governor expressed his satisfaction that with the establishment of Sarwar Zuberi Liver Institute, not only the patients from all over the country would be served but training to post- graduate medical students and other related staff would also be streamlined, addressing the dearth of expertise.

VC of Dow University of Health Sciences Prof Masood Hameed Khan, in his key-note address, said the institute is in accordance with a three-pronged strategy of the university which focuses on academic excellence, community care and human resource development.

The VC claimed that it would be providing state-of-art facilities to indoor and outdoor patients, besides undertaking high standard of academic activities, including research and various training courses for post-graduate students.

Liver Transplantation is also among the scheme of things planned for the ambitious Sarwar Zubeiri Liver Institute, the VC said, reminding that the institute would be the part of DUHS Research City Project, with provision for other health care institutes.

According to Prof Masood Hameed, human resource development is the idea behind the proposed DUHS Research City which would include a new medical college with a capacity for 100 under-graduates, adding that it would soon start a teaching programme.

Institutes of nursing, medical technology, oral health sciences, diabetes and endocrinology will be the integral part of the research city, he said, mentioning that the Higher Education Commission had already approved PC-1 of the Nursing Institute which would start its academic programme by January 2006.

Reiterating the fact that DUHS is attempting to plug the gap in context of shortage of expertise and well-trained medical professionals, he mentioned that elaborate PhD and MPhil programmes of DUHS would formally commence from July 2005 while the HEC-supported digital library at the university would also be operational from the next month.

Prof. Masood Hameed said that Rs 36 million have been sanctioned by the Higher Education Commission for the DUHS Digital Library.

Sindh Health Secretary Prof Naushad Sheikh highlighted the fact that 10 per cent of the local population is estimated to be suffering from one or the other type of liver diseases and said the establishment of Sarwar Zubeiri Institute was extremely necessary.

Project Director Dr Rana Qamar presented the welcome address and Director, Ojha Dr Sadiq Ashraf, offered vote of thanks.—APP