KARACHI: A state-of-the-art neonatal intensive care unit (ICU) has opened at the Koohi Goth Hospital — a 200-bed healthcare facility providing free obstetrics and gynaecology services in Malir.

Established at a cost of Rs17.5 million collected with philanthropists’ support, the ICU consists of eight incubators and modern multi-directional phototherapy machines for treating newborns diagnosed with severe jaundice.

It was inaugurated by chairperson of the Hamdard Foundation Sadia Rashid on Sunday.

“It would help save lives of newborns in the rural parts of Karachi extending up to Thatta district where there is no such facility,” Dr Tipu Sultan of Zafar and Atia Foundation Charitable Trust, which runs the hospital, said while speaking at the ceremony.

Dr Shershah Syed, who manages the Koohi Goth Hospital, informed the audience that the hospital planned to train 18 ICU technicians every year. The initiative, he pointed out, would help youth learn life-saving skills and get employment at similar units at other hospitals and, to an extent, meet the growing needs of paramedical staff in the city.

“The hospital is currently handling 15 to 20 delivery cases daily. The addition of this neonatal unit will boost staff’s capacity and capability in saving lives of newborns suffering from different health complications,” said Dr Syed.

The ICU would also serve the newborns whose delivery cases were handled by midwives at home in rural and suburban parts of Karachi, he added.

About the hospital’s services, he said that it also provided rehabilitation services to fistula patients and conducted training courses for midwives and nurses.

“The hospital exclusively deals with female patients. The idea of establishing such a charitable hospital was conceived after we saw women facing extreme hardships at government-run hospitals where male patients are also treated,” he said.

Noted businessmen and philanthropists had helped establish this ICU, which would play a key role in increasing access of poor families to modern medical facilities.

Faisal Edhi of the Edhi Foundation said that the concept of the Koohi Goth Hospital was an exemplary one in a society where health facilities were being run as commercial entities.

Appreciating the hospital’s services, Sadia Rashid said that the establishment of such a facility in a rural area fully served the mission of the late Hakim Mohammad Said, who cared a lot about children’s health, physical upkeep, their upbringing and quality education.

Published in Dawn, June 5th, 2019