KARACHI, Nov 17: Establishment of a full-fledged Inpatient Nutrition Rehabilitation Facility at the Paediatrics Unit-I, Civil Hospital Karachi, was formally inaugurated in collaboration with Ikebana International Chapter.

Kazumi Debika, the Consul General of Japan, appreciating the initiative jointly undertaken by the medical staff of the department and the supporters for the cause, emphasized on the need for a constant coordination between the public health care centres and volunteers in the larger interest of the masses.

He also promised to extend maximum support for the ongoing refurbishment work at the paediatric unit through promotion of a regular correlation between private and public sectors.

Prof D.S. Akram, in charge of the unit, discussed the work undertaken by the doctors of the unit to improve and enhance the available facilities for the needy and sick children.

It was noticed that a surge in cost of living was increasingly compelling many families to rely on the public sector institutions. Ironically, funding for government health centres are, however, not rising at the similar pace.

She mentioned that the Nutrition Rehabilitation Unit was very much needed in all the government hospitals as malnutrition is exposing people, particularly children and women, to a wide range of infections and ailments.

The President of Ikebana International, Karachi Chapter, gave a brief account of activities undertaken by the organization in its efforts to support welfare societies and institutions functioning in the city. This, she said, was besides the work done to promote the art of Ikebana in Karachi.—APP