The Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, has announced an additional Rs.5bn for stroke treatment and pledged to expand specialized healthcare facilities across the province.
Speaking at an event marking World Stroke Day at the Punjab Institute of Neurosciences (PINS), she said the government would establish stroke centers, cardiac facilities, pediatrics centers and cancer hospitals at every divisional headquarters.
She also announced plans to establish 15 additional stroke centers and said heart transplant surgeries would begin soon at the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology.
The chief minister said no stroke patient would be denied treatment because of a lack of funds, directing officials to inform her directly if additional financial support was required.
Maryam Nawaz stressed that timely medical intervention was critical in stroke cases, saying patients had a window of around four to five hours in which treatment could significantly improve their chances of recovery.
She urged people experiencing symptoms such as weakness in an arm or difficulty speaking to seek immediate medical assistance and call Rescue 1122.
High blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol were among the risk factors she highlighted.
The chief minister said Rescue 1122 had helped save the lives of 85 stroke patients by transporting them to specialized centers in time. She praised rescue workers and medical teams for their efforts.
During her visit to PINS, she inspected the intensive care unit and control room, observed neurosurgical procedures from the operating theatre gallery and met patients. She also witnessed stroke rehabilitation sessions using robotic physiotherapy.
She pointed out that the cost of the TNK injection used in stroke treatment was beyond the reach of many ordinary people, while travelling from distant districts such as Rahim Yar Khan to Lahore for treatment posed additional difficulties.
The establishment of local stroke facilities would help patients access timely care closer to home, she added.
Provincial Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique said Punjab has established 40 stroke centers, including 38 primary stroke centers and two comprehensive stroke centers.
He also said that 2.6 million dialysis sessions and 2,400 cardiac surgeries had been performed in the province.
The chief minister said 15 additional stroke centers would be established, adding that PINS Executive Director Dr Asif Bashir and head of neurology Dr Qasim Bashir were training doctors and nurses to strengthen specialized stroke care.
She said the provincial government was also expanding cardiac services, with state-of-the-art catheterization laboratories planned in 20 districts. Facilities had already been established in eight or nine districts, she added.
The chief minister said a paediatric center would be established in every division so that parents would not have to travel to Lahore when their children required specialized treatment.
She also said a cancer hospital was being built in Lahore to provide free treatment to underprivileged patients. A pain management center would be established there to alleviate the suffering of patients with advanced-stage cancer, she added.
CM Punjab said the government was developing specialized treatment facilities for genetic and blood disorders at Nawaz Sharif Medical District. She added that 100 billion rupees had been spent on providing free medicines, while 100 million people had received treatment at government hospitals over the past year.
She said between 15,000 and 16,000 children, including those from other provinces, had undergone cardiac surgery in Punjab, adding that no child was refused treatment based on their place of residence.
The chief minister said thousands of patients had also benefited from expensive procedures, including kidney, liver and other organ transplants.
Emphasizing the importance of accessible healthcare, she said the government was taking medical services to people’s doorsteps through field hospitals and providing treatment to industrial workers at factories so they would not lose their daily wages.
She further said public office was a blessing when used to improve people’s lives, adding that saving one person’s life was akin to saving all humanity. She urged people to have confidence in Pakistani doctors and healthcare institutions, saying the province was working to improve the standard and accessibility of specialized medical care.
