RAWALPINDI, Mar 20 (APP): President, Al Shifa Trust Maj. Gen (Retd) Rehmat Khan on Monday said that the number of eye patients was increasing significantly in Pakistan due to the increase in diabetes, and lack of knowledge.
Talking to the media, he said that the Trust had planned to double its capacity over the next five years to serve the masses better.
Rehmat said the expansion will not only increase the capacity, but also improve procedures, overall care, accessibility, safety, and delivery of service.
Maj. Gen. (Retd) Rehmat Khan informed that under “Vision 2028,” patient’s care would be boosted to new heights from patient admission to discharge.
He said the scope of services would be doubled from 1.3 million patients annually to 2.5 million in five hospitals including Rawalpindi, Chakwal, Kohat, Muzaffarabad, and Sukkar.
The trust president informed that construction of a new block was underway at Chakwal Hospital, while a state-of-the- art-hospital would be set up in Quetta.
A camping structure would also be set up in Gilgit to provide free treatment to the people of remote areas of Gilgit-Baltistan while the establishment of low-vision departments in Lahore and Karachi is on the cards.
He said that outreach teams were added to the Sukkar and Kohat eye hospitals.
Mobile health vehicles have been arranged to give pick-and-drop services to the poor patients of rural areas of Rawalpindi, Chakwal, Sukkar, and Kohat, he added.
After the essential screening, patients will be brought to the hospitals for complete treatment that will include free medicine, meals, and a free night stay, adding patients will be dropped at their homes after the procedure.
Rehmat Khan informed that during the last three decades, the trust had treated around 30 million patients, a service worth Rs13 billion, while thousands were suffering from glaucoma, citric, and cancer.
He called for upgrading eye treatment facilities at the district level to handle the increasing number of eye patients.
