Lahore: Punjab Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique has said that Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif is taking fundamental and historic steps to improve the healthcare system across the province.
He expressed these views during a meeting with a delegation of the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), led by PMA Centre President Dr Izhar Chaudhry, at the Department of Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education on Wednesday.
The meeting discussed various proposals for further improvement of the healthcare system and matters of mutual interest.
Khawaja Salman Rafique said providing the best possible healthcare facilities to the people was the government’s top priority. He said a network of new hospitals was being established across the province to provide quality medical services to citizens closer to their homes.
The minister said the state-of-the-art Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment and Research in Lahore, Jinnah Institute of Cardiology and Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cardiology in Sargodha were landmark projects of the Punjab government.
He said the provincial government was taking historic and revolutionary measures in the health sector. New ventilators were being purchased for teaching hospitals, while new MRI and CT Angio machines were also being procured at a cost of billions of rupees.
He said fundamental measures were being taken to enhance the capacity of hospitals and improve the quality of healthcare services. Efforts were also underway to ensure the provision of the best possible health facilities to people at their doorsteps, he added.
The delegation included PMA Punjab President Dr Kamran Saeed, PMA Punjab President Dr Maqsood Zahid, PMA Gujarat President Dr Muhammad Abbas Chaudhry, former Senior Vice President Dr Muhammad Afzal, PMA Senior Vice President Dr Ehsan Mirza, former General Secretary Dr Ehtisham-ul-Haq and Joint Secretary PMA Punjab Dr Zeeshan Asif.
