ISLAMABAD, Oct 30: The Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) has embarked upon a policy to convert the institution into a centre of excellence by initiating a number of value-added facilities including a Rs551 million cardiac centre.

"The Central Development Working Party has approved funds worth Rs551 million to set up a 42-bed cardiac centre, the construction of which would be started this year," Executive Director Pims Dr Fazle Hadi told reporters at his office on Saturday.

Out of the Rs551 million, he said, Rs50 million would be released soon by the government to commence construction work which included two operation theatres, while Rs442 million would be spent on purchase of diagnostic equipment.

He said the hospital was developing a feasibility report to seek government help in establishing a state-of-the-art liver transplant unit within the premises of the hospital. Such a facility has become the need of the hour, especially when hepatitis B and C have become a silent killer of a large number of young population, he added.

He said the institution was also formulating another plan to acquire a helicopter to provide rescue services by airlifting victims from accident sites.

Lately, the government has approved a Rs37.8 million project to upgrade computerization of the institution to benefit patients, doctors and the management, he said.

Dr Hadi said the hospital had asked the St Antoine Hospital of Paris to expand its collaboration with Pims to other disciplines of medicines instead of the medical intensive care only.

He said the hospital management was also relocating the medical intensive care unit through private donations that included enhancing the bed capacity to eight and then to ten.

He said the hospital was organizing a public education symposium on breast cancer awareness on Saturday next. The symposium would be organized in Urdu language.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof Anwarul Haq said teachers and staff of local schools and colleges had been invited to attend the symposium to impart awareness among their students.

He said breast cancer was the most common malignancy in the country and it was claimed that Pakistan had the highest incidence of this disease in South Asia.

If diagnosed early and appropriately dealt with, breast cancer could be cured through appropriate modalities like surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, he said.

There had been remarkable progress in medical sciences related to early diagnosis and treatment of the disease.