Health department starts providing kits for free cataract surgery in Phalia

On the direction and approval of the Chief Minister Punjab Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, Provincial Health Department has started providing kits for free cataract surgery in all the districts.


According to handout issued here on Thursday, under this programme, every district will get 500 kits containing all the medicines, consumables and Intra-Ocular Lens. (IOL)
In this connection, Secretary Health Punjab Fawad Hassan Fawad said that this programme is being implemented through public private partnership under which the IOLs have been provided by Fred Hollow Foundation, Australia whereas, all the medicines / consumables are being provided by the Health Department Punjab and both the partners are contributing equally.
He further said that the College of Ophthalmology and Allied Vision Sciences, KEMU is implementing this programme.
In this regard, all the districts Health Authorities have been directed to contact with the Vice Chancellor, KEMU / MAYO Hospital Lahore, Prof. Dr. Asad Aslam Khan to obtain these kits according to their allocation.
The Health Department has issued schedule for collecting these operation kits under which District Rawalpindi, Attock, Jehlum, Chakwal, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Gujrat, Hafizabad, Phalia and Mandi Bahauddin has been called to collect these kits on 7th December. Similarly, Lahore, Kasur, Sheikhupura, Narowalm Okara, Khanewal, Muzaffargarh, Dera Ghazi Khan and Layyah will get kits on 8th December, whereas, Faisalabad, Jhang, Sahiwal, Toba Tek Singh, Sargodha, Khushab, Mianwali, Bhakkar and Chiniot on 9thDecember and Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Rajanpur, Lodhran, Vehari, Pakpattan and Bahawalnagar will collect these kits on 10th December 2010 from College of Ophthalmology and Allied Vision Sciences, KEMU.
Secretary Health further said that Health Department has provided and opportunity to those poor patients who cannot bear the expenses of operation, resulting which they are deprived of vision.
He said that the hospital’s administrations have directed to strictly adopt merit by policy during providing these operation kits to the patients and it must be ensured that no deserving patient could be ignored.
In his regard, Health Department would closely monitor all the District Headquarter Hospitals for implementing the programme, he concluded.