ISLAMABAD, Oct 18: Children Hospital’s operation theatres at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences have started functioning after remaining closed for over two months, sources told Dawn on Wednesday.

The operation theatres were closed following heavy monsoon rains in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad in July. The heavy rain on July 23 had damaged the building and the equipment of the hospital, forcing the management to suspend operations. Moreover, the paediatrics surgery department had been working without any senior professor or consultant for the past about two years before its closure.

The sources said the hospital management had reappointed Prof Naeemuzzafar Khan as head of the department and he had assumed his charge.

Earlier, Prof Khan had retired from the job after he was denied extension. He had served the department for 14 years.

Prof Zaheer Abbasi took the charge from Prof Khan, but he left for England on long leave. Later, the hospital management appointed assistant professor Dr Iftikhar as the head of the department, but he too joined another institution, leaving the post vacant. After finding no other suitable candidate, the hospital management decided to re-appoint Prof Khan, the sources added.

Meanwhile, a junior doctor told Dawn that 45 operations had been performed in the hospital during the past five days, out of which 13 were performed on Wednesday only. He said the premature intensive care unit (PICU), neo-natal intensive care unit (NICU) and the ventilators had also started functioning.

Due to closure of the paediatrics department, patients were being referred to the Military Hospital (MH), the only hospital having paediatrics surgery unit in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Besides patients, the post graduate trainee residents also suffered due to the closure of the department.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan (CPSP) had suspended their training due to non-availability of a supervisor.