PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has intended to establish burns and plastic surgery units in three public sector hospitals of Mardan, Swabi and Nowshera to ease patient load from these central districts of the province on the Burns and Plastic Surgery Centre, Hayatabad.

“Our 120-bed burns and plastic surgery centre remains full to capacity throughout the year, so it’s not possible to accommodate patients referred from other districts. Now as plans are in the works to open burns and plastic surgery units in Mardan, Swabi and Nowshera hospitals, we hope that the initiative will tangibly reduce patient burden from these districts on our centre,” Burns and Plastic Surgery Centre Hayatabad director Prof Tahmeedullah told the concluding session of a preparatory course for the FCPS (plastic surgery) Exam here on Sunday.

The event was organised by the Pakistan Association of Plastic Surgeons (PAPS) at the Postgraduate Medical Institute (PGMI).

Expert says incidence of burns and trauma growing in the province

Prof Tahmeedullah said Mardan, Swabi and Nowshera hospitals had vacancies of burns specialists as well as space to set up special wards for patients with burn injuries.

He said the Bacha Khan Medical Complex Swabi had room to put up a 10- bed ward and a two-bed intensive care unit, where a woman surgeon would start offering her services with the “complete” assistance of experts of his centre.

The director said the posts of plastic surgeons and medical officers were also available to start a burns ward at Swabi hospital, while the Qazi Hussain Ahmad Medical Complex had a similar situation.

He said a 10 beds burns unit in the Mufti Mehmood Teaching Hospital of Dera Ismail Khan district was being upgraded to ensure patients are managed locally.

Dr Tahmeedullah said a burns centre set up in Matta tehsil of Swat and a burns ward in Saidu Group of Teaching Hospital provided a great relief to patients with burns as they received treatment and other services in their native areas.

He said the Lady Reading Hospital and Khyber Teaching Hospital of Peshawar had 20 beds each for people with burn injuries but more wards and doctors were direly needed given the growing burns and trauma incidence in the province.

“As per the requirements of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, hospitals should have plastic and neurosurgery wards for awarding degrees,” he said.

The preparatory course for the FCPS (plastic surgery) Exam was attended by over 85 students and 25 senior examiners from all over the country highlighting the importance of and need for plastic surgery.

Prof Khalid Masood Gondal, president of College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP), told participants by the Zoom video call that the course was meant to prepare highly-trained surgeons and improve management of burns cases.

CEO of the PGMI Prof Sahibzada Mahmood Noor, who was also in attendance, said his institute had modern facilities to produce specialists and thus, improving patient care in the province.

He said the skill lab at the PGMI was the only public sector modern simulation centre in the country that was equipped with an operating theatre, wards, and spaces for the training of health professionals.

CPSP counselor Prof Waqar Alam Jan said he hoped that the doctors undergoing postgraduate training would utilise their experience to the benefit of patients.

Executive director of the Jinnah Burns and Reconstructive Surgery Lahore Prof Moazzam Nazeer Tarar, who was also in attendance, called for measures to prevent burn injuries and avoid complications.

Prof Obaidullah, one of the pioneers of plastic surgery in the province, also spoke on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2023