IRC Reproductive Health Initiative Benefits Vulnerable Women, Transgender People

 

ISLAMABAD, MAR 20: Cases of domestic violence across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa saw a rise in the aftermath of the pandemic-triggered lockdowns. This posed serious implications for women’s wellbeing, their sexual and reproductive health, their mental health, and their ability to participate and lead in the recovery of our societies and economy. 

The situation was graver in communities with high rates of illiteracy and multi-dimensional poverty.”  

These views were shared by Tayyaba Aurangzeb – Deputy Director Operations/Country Director (Acting/Interim) in a press statement issued by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) at the conclusion of its Reproductive Health initiative supported by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by Pakistan Village Development Program (PVDP).

Simultaneous to the outbreak of COVID-19,the increased incidence of violence against women and girls globally, especially domestic violence led the United Nations to declare it as a “shadow pandemic.” Speaking about IRC’s contribution to alleviating this grim situation she added, “We launched an intervention to improve the health and safety of women and girls, with a focus on those with reduced access to Reproductive Health (RH), and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) response services during the pandemic.”

During the course of the intervention, IRC delivered an essential and life-saving integrated package of GBV and RH interventions to women, adolescent girls, transgender people and men, in Swat and Peshawar Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. 

These districts were selected owing to a high need and minimal availability of SRH and GBV services as part of the humanitarian response.

IRC in partnership with the provincial government, ensured delivery of health services including prenatal, natal, infant care, family planning, contraceptives, and nutrional councelling. 

In addition, IRC established 10 safe spaces to deliver psychological councelling, awareness and vocational training to those most in need in the target districts of Swat and Peshawar.

Capacity-building exercises were also conducted so that women in the targeted districts had information, power, and resources to decide in case they wished to seek Sexual and Reproductive Health and Gender-Based Violence response services. 

Efforts were also made to ensure that women and girls at an individual and community level had the demonstrative capacity to respond when faced with a crisis situation.

“International Rescue Committee remains hopeful that this intervention will go a long way in creating an enabling environment to effectively respond to issues of Reproductive Health as well as Gender-Based Violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” read the statement.

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Shahid Afridi Foundation received 1st mobile health care unit

 

ISLAMABAD, MAR 10: Master Group of Industries, a leading business entity consisting of Master Motor, Foton, and Master MoltyFoam has announced to donate its first-ever completely fabricated Foton M-280 Truck with a Mother and Child care facility unit to Shahid Afridi Foundation.

The kind act is intended to extend the support, accessibility, and to provide healthcare services to mothers, unborn children, infants, and women of the Chakwal-Balkasar region.

The donation ceremony was held at Master Capital Motors, a dealership of Master Motor in Turnol, Islamabad, Pakistan.

The event was attended by notable guests including Shahid Afridi, CEO of Master Motor Mr. Samir Malik, COO of Master Motor Mr. Raza Ansari, Regional Head of Foton China Mr. David Lee, Chairman of REDO Foundation Mr. Hasan Sultan, and CEO of Ahmed Medix Mr. Sohail Ahmad among others.

Speaking at the occasion, CEO of Master Motor, Mr. Samir Malik said, ‘the vision of Master Group of Industries is to promote progress and prosperity across Pakistan to build a better future.’

He praised Shahid Afridi and his team for their commitment to helping Pakistan by improving the conditions of the underprivileged communities in terms of Education, Healthcare, Access to Water, Sports Rehabilitation, and Emergency Relief Response.

He further talked about the high infant mortality rate of 42 to 62 deaths per 1000 births in the region and how this unit will serve the purpose of reducing this number.

Adding on, Shahid Afridi talked about how he wanted to target his relief efforts in those regions which are difficult to access due to transportation and logistics constraints.

He further added that it was his dream to have such a healthcare unit in operation that could provide quality health services to inaccessible areas.

Today this dream was fulfilled through the generous support of Master Motor, Foton, and Master MoltyFoam.

This Foton Master Mother and Child Care Unit is fabricated on Foton M-280 Truck and will serve within the 50KM radius from Chakwal to Balkasar, covering approximately 300 villages - free of cost.

The health truck is well-equipped with an analyzer (for blood, urine & chemistry sampling) and an Ultrasound machine along with other facilities.

It helps provide a comprehensive clinic solution to the mothers and infants in these remote areas where traveling options for women and children are severely limited and quality healthcare is not available.

The Foton Health Care Unit will allow doctors to test for diseases, identify and diagnose problems instantly and help save lives by providing early diagnosis and treatment.

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Getz Pharma, BIDE & SZABIST join hands to foster a culture of collaboration

KARACHI, MAR 10: Pakistan is facing a steep rise in the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCD). Recent figures from IDF Atlas are staggering depicting a sharp increase in diabetes. Pakistan ranked 3rd in number of people living with diabetes in the world only after China and India, the countries with highest number of populations.

In Pakistan, 1 in 4 adults (26.7%) are living with diabetes accounting for 33 million people, the burden of the disease is expected to increase as about 10.5 million people suffer from intermittent hyperglycemia and this disease is responsible for 400,000 premature deaths annually. If no community-based campaigns are initiated to intervene, the number is expected to increase.

This major public health challenge requires immediate plan of action. These actions include standardization of care at public and private sectors, development and implementation of nationwide diabetes registry and integrated approach to diabetes and NCD care. Continuing education in management, cultural competence and leadership developmental programs are also responsibilities of public health.

Hence, training and capacity building for NCD managers at all levels is the key for initiation of successful prevention plans in future. Moreover, utilization of electronic, social and print media for propagation of the right message is of utmost importance.

Producing advocates of health for policy development, education and other relevant stakeholders for community-orientated prevention strategies will lead to better and integrated programs leading to better service provision for community. 

As a research-driven pharmaceutical company, Getz Pharma has always taken an active role in supporting advanced scientific studies that can help patients and healthcare professionals in dealing with life-threatening diseases.

This time, Getz Pharma is proud to enter into an agreement with BIDE (Baqai Institute of Diabetes and Endocrinology) and SZABIST to promote academic and research activities across the country, particularly in the area of non-communicable diseases such as Diabetes Mellitus.

Getz Pharma, BIDE, and SZABIST aim to form a unique collaborative platform which will allow experienced physicians and researchers at BIDE in engaging the academically advanced graduate students at SZABIST in scientific research to generate valuable insights into areas of NDCs, particularly Diabetes. The three patrons will also engage in activities centered on capacity building of healthcare providers.

“SZABIST Life Sciences department is engaged in qualitative research in different areas of Public Health to provide solutions to prevailing problems. Graduate students are very strong assets that can be utilized to carry out innovative research to solve public health challenges.

An alliance between hospitals, educational institutes and industry leaders can just be the key we need to address severe public health challenges like non communicable diseases” – Shahnaz Wazir Ali – President SZABIST.

Speaking on the occasion Khalid Mahmood – Managing Director and CEO of Getz Pharma highlighted that “The main objective behind this initiative was to bring the three organizations under a single platform and formulate a strategy for collaborative research activities, capacity building of healthcare professionals, increasing awareness of communities and sensitizing policymakers to take immediate actions”.

Specific insights generated by the data can be utilized for making strategies for effective management of diseases.

By bringing all the stakeholders in the industry on a single platform, Getz Pharma has taken the first step in establishing meaningful partnerships that will address the needs of local population.

Appreciating Getz Pharma’s efforts, Dr. Abdul Basit – Director of BIDE says, “Getz Pharma has always come up with creative solutions to address the healthcare challenges.

By initiating this partnership, they are helping us in standardization of diabetes care across the country and developing preventive strategies for the people who are at high risk of developing non-communicable diseases and striving to develop a healthy nation.

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Zong organizes Digital Health Awareness Session on Omicron Variant

 

ISLAMABAD, JAN 31: Pakistan’s digital frontrunner, Zong 4G, in collaboration with telehealth startup, SehatKahani, organized a digital health session on the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus for all the country at large. Employees and their families also attended this useful session.

Of late, Omicron has taken the world by storm as the most infectious variant of Covid, causing a rapid surge in the spread of Covid-19 worldwide and giving rise to the 5th wave of the pandemic in Pakistan.

Being aware of the virus’s changing patterns and the risks it brings for Pakistan, Zong joined forces with SehatKahani to educate the people about preventing the disease and leading a healthy life amid the pandemic and its new variants.

“We want to equip all our people with the right information regarding Coronavirus and its emerging variants of which Omicron is the latest and most infectious,” shared Zong’s official spokesperson.

“With most of the people continuing to work from home, it was crucial to educate them and those around them on the hazards of Omicron and the ways to prevent it to lead a healthy life amid the surge.”

“We’re happy to have joined hands with SehatKahani once again, this time to appraise our people and their loved ones about how Omicron behaves so that it can be avoided as much as possible.

This is just a small show of our care for Zong employees and all other Pakistanis,” the spokesperson added.

Zong had partnered with SehatKahani last year to offer thousands of free remote and online consultations for the marginalized strata of the society.

This collaboration is still on-going and shall continue to support the people of Pakistan.

Zong offered more than 12,000 e-health consultations to the underprivileged members of the community via the SehatKahani Retail app. 

7,000 of these consultations facilitated Covid-19 relief patients whereas 5,000 consultations were applicable to non-Covid cases.

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NCOC to review Covid data before taking any decision on schools closure

 

ISLAMABAD, JAN 17: The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Monday said it will review data of positive Covid-19 cases in educational institutions before deciding on whether or not to keep them open as the fifth wave of the pandemic spreads at an alarming rate across the country.

During the last Covid wave, the NCOC had closed educational institutes in areas with a high incidence of Covid-19 from Sept 3 to 12. During that period, educational institutes were closed in 15 of Punjab’s districts, eight districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad.

Meanwhile, the Sindh government had previously closed schools on July 24 due to rising cases during the pandemic’s fourth wave and reopened them more than a month later on August 30.

Pakistan is currently in the grip of the pandemic’s fifth wave which is being driven by the highly transmissible Omicron variant and leading to surges in cases and positivity rates.

In the last 24 hours, the country reported 4,340 new cases, up from 4,027 a day earlier, raising the tally to 1,328,487 and the national positivity rate to 8.7 per cent. Sindh and Punjab led the cases with 2,670, and 1,131 infections, respectively.

The NCOC today held a meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar and also attended by Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan. Provincial Health and Education Ministers also joined the meeting virtually.

Following their meeting, the forum issued a statement, saying: “Decision about education institutions will be taken on data of positive cases of various institutions for which massive testing in education institutions is being carried out.”

It further said that a “massive testing” drive was being carried out in educational institutions to gather data.

Deliberating on the situation, the ministers, who participated in the meeting virtually, informed the forum about the steps being taken for implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) and Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) in wake of the spike in coronavirus cases

“Keeping in view [the] new disease prevalence, fresh set of NPIs was presented and discussed with provinces and [a] new set of NPIs will be implemented by provinces in the next 48 hours after consultative process with all stakeholders,” the NCOC said.

The NCOC, in a separate statement on Saturday, had urged provinces to review the situation and decide about placing restrictions on public gatherings, weddings, schools, restaurants and public transport.

On the same day, Sindh government decided that schools across the province will remain open even as the positivity rate in Karachi was far higher than in other parts of the country.

In November, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan had sounded the alarm, saying that the arrival of the Omicron variant was inevitable and a matter of time.

Pakistan had subsequently placed a complete ban on Nov 27 on travel from six south African countries — South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia — and Hong Kong in the wake of the variant’s discovery.

This travel ban was later extended to nine more countries — Croatia, Hungary, Netherlands, Ukraine, Ireland, Slovenia, Vietnam, Poland and Zimbabwe.

Since then, Pakistan has seen a steep rise in infections with the number of active cases crossing 35,000 in the last 24 hours. The effect of the fifth wave is particularly intense in Karachi where the positivity rate jumped to 40 per cent on Sunday.

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Courtesy Dawn News

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Healthwire raises $3.3 million to fuel its “Quality Healthcare for all” vision

ISLAMABAD, DEC 30: Healthwire, a health-tech startup and operator of one of the largest horizontally integrated ecosystem of healthcare service providers in Pakistan, has closed $3.3 Million in funding. The round drew participation from 47 Ventures, Habib Bank Limited, Dilsons Private Limited and angel investors from Silicon Valley.  

Healthwire was founded by Hamza Iqbal, a LUMS graduate, with a vision to make access to quality healthcare accessible and affordable for every citizen of Pakistan. Since its inception, Healthwire has been singularly focused on digitizing the operations of doctors, clinics, hospitals, labs and pharmacies and now boasts the largest and most widely integrated platform of thousands of health care service providers in over 60 cities of Pakistan.

In a statement, co-founder and CTO of Healthwire, Muhammad Nabeel said “The patient-doctor interaction is the point where the whole healthcare ecosystem converges. By having this interaction on our health-tech platform, we can ensure that quality healthcare is accessible to patients in the remotest areas of the country. The economies of scale of the tech platform allow us to ensure that this access is affordable and inclusive. 

Khurram Zafar, Managing Director of 47 Ventures, and a seed investor in Healthwire said, "We are excited to be doubling down on one of the stars in our portfolio. The growth and momentum that Healthwire has built even during the tough COVID period is a testament to the strength and resilience of the team. It is destined to become the health tech leader of Pakistan." 

Sagheer Mufti, COO at HBL, commenting on the occasion said: “HBL is excited to invest in Healthwire, as it is an integrated healthcare digital platform. It will ease the customer journey and improve quality of healthcare, particularly multiple healthcare providers. Through provision of embedded banking services, to providers like hospitals, clinics, labs, health insurance providers and pharmacies will be able to serve, patients more effectively. HBL and Healthwire partnership seeks to expand access to quality and convenient healthcare in Pakistan. With the Healthwire investment. and collaboration, digital financial inclusion will be widened, reaffirming HBL's commitment to be a technology company with a banking license.”

Healthwire, building upon its strong presence in the healthcare service provider ecosystem, has now deployed a web and mobile application for patients to connect with those service providers. The platform is already connecting over 10,000 patients with doctors every single day.  The startup intends to use the funding to further fuel its growth and become the healthcare super app of Pakistan.

Hassan Sheikh, Director at Dilsons Private Limited while commenting on their investment in Healthwire said: “Dilsons strategy to invest in Digital Healthcare fits well with integrated solution provider Healthwire. This gives us an opportunity to be part of Digital Health ecosystem which will shape the future of health tech. This partnership will enable us to be a part of Pakistan’s leading digital healthcare platform for disease management with strong capabilities and eventually leading to better healthcare outcomes for patients.”

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Japan announces US$ 4.35 million grant to support Polio Programme in Pakistan

 

ISLAMABAD, DEC 13: The Government of Japan has announced a US$ 4.35 million grant to procure essential oral polio vaccines as part of its continued support to Pakistan for its polio eradication efforts.  

This latest grant will be utilized for the procurement of 24 million oral doses of vaccines. It will allow the programme to reach around 21 million children under five years old with focus on the high-risk districts with persistent poliovirus transmission. The vaccines will be used during vaccination drives planned in 2022.

According the National Action Plan (NEAP) 2021-2023, the Polio Porgramme’s strategic goal is to permanently interrupt all poliovirus transmission in Pakistan by the end of 2023.

The notes of the grant were signed and exchanged between the Government of Japan and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the grant agreement was signed and exchanged between Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and UNICEF.

"The Polio eradication efforts made substantive progress this year by limiting the virus circulation resulted significant decrease of Polio cases despite challenges posed by COVID-19. The programme is confident to permanently interrupt all types of polioviruses by the end of 2023," said Dr. Shahzad Baig, National Coordinator of the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme.

Appreciating the support of the Government of Japan, Dr Shahzad said, "We are grateful to the people and the Government of Japan for their unwavering support for the children of Pakistan, the new funding will enable us to reach every child with the essential polio vaccine."

WADA Mitsuhiro, Ambassador of Japan, appreciated the significant progress made this year in controlling the spread of poliovirus, saying that “we are now only one step away from the goal, polio-free Pakistan.”

He reiterated his support to the initiative for eradicating all types of poliovirus by the end of 2023 and noted that “Japan has provided assistance in maternal and child health, polio eradication, and routine immunization in Pakistan for decades and will continue its support that will directly benefit vulnerable people.”

"We are glad to witness collaborative effort between Polio program and Expanded Program on Immunization, represented by recently conducted Measles Rubella and Polio campaign. We are also honored that numerous Polio program experiences are utilized to fight against COVID-19, such as 1166 helpline, PCR test capacity at Polio Laboratory and vaccinators’ trainings by JICA Project.

We have a strong desire to witness the all types of polio virus interruption by the end of 2023 as suggested by Government of Pakistan. We appreciate the unwavering leadership of Government of Pakistan, with the highest respect to the frontline health workers.," said Shigeki Furuta, Chief Representative, JICA.

"Pakistan has achieved tremendous success against interrupting Polio virus this year. From 84 reported polio cases in year 2020, the incidence has come down to one case in the last eleven months," said Aida Girma, UNICEF Representative in Pakistan, highlighting the consistent efforts of the Government of Pakistan and partners.

"The last mile towards eradication, however, will be tough and requires continues support from the partners like Government of Japan to achieve a polio-free status," said Aida while acknowledging the support of the people and Government of Japan. 

The new funding is part of the continuous support of the Japan Government in the Polio Eradication programme since 1996. To date, the grant and loan contribution from the Government of Japan has amounted to approx. US$ 230.497 million dollars to support the Polio programme in Pakistan through UNICEF. 

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Omicron co-discoverer: Variant precursors around for very long time

 

Cape Town, DEC 5: Precursors of the recently discovered Omicron coronavirus variant are likely to have existed for a very long time, according to their co-discoverer, who hails from Germany.

“According to current knowledge, an early form of Omicron evolved as a separate virus type even before Alpha and Delta emerged,” Wolfgang Preiser of Stellenbosch University near Cape Town told dpa. He is a member of the research consortium that discovered the variant.

This type of virus then probably evolved over many months without attracting attention, Preiser said. “The question is: Why did Omicron remain hidden for so long and only now get going? Were one or two mutations still missing to be able to spread quickly?”

The oldest known evidence of the variant so far dates from the first half of November.

The variant, which was first discovered in South Africa and Botswana, has a particularly large number of mutations. Among other things, they affect the spike protein through which the viruses dock onto human cells.

In addition, there are mutations near the so-called furin cleavage site, a region that plays a role in the uptake of the virus into human cells.

In Germany, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) disease control body, four cases of the Omicron variant had been confirmed by genome sequencing by Wednesday – all of them travellers returning from South Africa. The variant is suspected in eight other cases in Germany. Experts, however, assume that there are already more cases.

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Omicron could be the dominant variant in Europe within a few months.

The EU health authority recently pointed out that while there are still a number of uncertainties regarding transmissibility, the severity of an infection and possible impact on immune defences, preliminary data suggests that the disease is already present in Europe.

However, preliminary data indicated that Omicron had a clear advantage over the Delta variant.

The WHO classifies Omicron as “of concern.”

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Courtesy Anews

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WHO: Omicron strain identified in 38 countries

 

Geneva, DEC 3: “The Omicron strain has been identified in 38 countries, but delta remains the dominant variant of COVID-19.”

The head of the technical group of the WHO Emergency Diseases Unit, Maria Van Kerkhove.

“Omicron has so far been identified in 38 countries in all six WHO regions, with the main increase in infections in Africa. But the delta variant remains dominant in the world,” Maria Van Kerkhove said speaking during an online session, answering questions about the coronavirus situation.

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Courtesy report.az

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WHO: Asia-Pacific should brace for Covid-19 surge due to Omicron

 

With more gatherings and an increase in people’s movements during the holiday season, people need to stay vigilant, said Takeshi Kasai, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.

Geneva, DEC 3: Asia-Pacific countries must brace for a new surge in the number of Covid-19 cases due to the Omicron variant, which emerged ahead of the Christmas holidays, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday.

With more gatherings and an increase in people’s movements during the holiday season, people need to stay vigilant, said Takeshi Kasai, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.

Initial data showed that Omicron, first detected in South Africa and recently declared a variant of concern, may be more transmissible than other coronavirus variants, Kasai said.

“Border control can delay the virus coming in and buy time, but every country and every community must prepare for new surges in cases,” he told an online press briefing from the regional headquarters in Manila.

“The positive news in all this is that none of the information we have currently about Omicron suggests we need to change the direction of our response,” he added.

Kasai urged countries to use their experience in dealing with the Delta variant as a guide on “how to cope with future surges in a more sustainable way.”

He stressed the need for countries to vaccinate more people, boost their health care capacities to ensure that hospitals are available for severe cases, and strengthen surveillance to detect cases in preparation for a surge.

People must also continue implementing public health and safety measures such as mask-wearing and physical distancing which are known to be effective in stopping the spread of the virus.

“We can adapt, so that Covid-19 has less impact on our lives in 2022, and we can start to regain – and hopefully retain – a sense of normality,” Kasai said.

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Courtesy Anews

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UK approves GSK Covid drug, appears effective against Omicron

 

The antibody treatment, sotrovimab, "was found to be safe and effective at reducing the risk of hospitalisation and death in people with mild to moderate COVID-19 infection who are at an increased risk of developing severe disease," said the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

LONDON, DEC 2: British regulators on Thursday approved a GlaxoSmithKline drug to treat those at high risk of developing severe Covid-19 symptoms, with the manufacturer saying it appears effective against the new Omicron variant.

 

The antibody treatment, sotrovimab, "was found to be safe and effective at reducing the risk of hospitalisation and death in people with mild to moderate COVID-19 infection who are at an increased risk of developing severe disease," said the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

 

Preclinical data showed that the drug "retains activity against key mutations of the new Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant," GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said in a statement.

 

"To date, sotrovimab has demonstrated ongoing activity against all tested variants of concern and interest defined by the World Health Organization (WHO)," it added.

 

Testing is ongoing "to confirm the neutralizing activity of sotrovimab against the combination of all the Omicron mutations with the intent to provide an update by the end of 2021."

 

A single dose of the drug was found to reduce the risk of hospitalization and death by 79 percent in high-risk adults with symptomatic COVID-19 infection, according to the MHRA.

 

Sotrovimab was developed by Britain's GSK and Vir Biotechnology based out of California.

 

It is a monoclonal antibody, a type of protein that attaches to the spike protein of the coronavirus, reducing its ability to enter the body's cells.

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Courtesy Anews

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Pakistan's most Extensive Cardiometabolic Study for the Healthy Young Population

ISLAMABAD, NOV 22: Getz Pharma Pvt. Ltd.,in partnership withTabba Heart Institute, announced the launch of Pakistan Study of Premature Coronary Atherosclerosis in Young Adults (PAK- SEHAT)

Cardiovascular diseases continue to have a significant impact across the world among different populations. To address the issue of the rising health burden of ASCVD in Pakistan, Getz Pharma Pvt. Ltd and Tabba Heart Institute (THI) formally launched PAK-SEHAT- Pakistan Study of Premature Coronary Atherosclerosis in Young Adults, a nationwide study conducted through Pakistan's first state of art mobile lab. PAK SEHAT project is the largest, first-of-its-kind, longitudinal cohort study on Atherosclerotic Risk Assessment in Pakistani Population. This 10-year joint venture of Getz Pharma &THI (PAK SEHAT) will help determine risk factors for coronary heart disease so that early detection can be done and disease can be prevented rather than treated. 

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide, causing approximately 32% of annual deaths. The risk of cholesterol-associated CVD varies among different ethnicities; however, the risk is four fold in the South Asian (SA) Population compared to other races. Furthermore, almost 75% of all CVD deaths are in low and middle-income countries (LMIC), where there are finite health resources and a multitude of health-seeking barriers. 

The state of heart diseases in Pakistan also reflects a concerning picture. According to the World Health Organization data published in 2018, coronary heart disease deaths in Pakistan reached 20% of total deaths, and Pakistan ranks 18 in cardiac mortality in the global ranking. Moreover, the numbers of potential CVD risk factors, including hypertension and diabetes, are also alarming in Pakistan, with 50% hypertension and 17.1% diabetes in the adult population. There is a drastic shift in CVD occurrence in young ages in the SA population, as evidenced by the groundbreaking INTERHEART study suggesting 10.6% of SA participants presented with a heart attack at <40 years of age. Therefore, this study primarily envisions screening the Pakistani individuals at a younger age to prevent increasing CVD burden in the future.

This study aims to recruit healthy volunteers <40 years of age, from selected urban and rural areas of Pakistan, who are asymptomatic and have no cardiovascular disease. This would allow for assessing the participants' risk factor profiles and follow them up for at least five years to document the incidence of ASCVD. The objectives of PAK SEHAT includes: 

1. To characterize the prevalence and severity of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis among young Pakistani men and women free of clinical CVD

2. To understand the impact, in terms of 5-year rates of cardiovascular events, by using the prognostic information provided by cardiac CTA and the other study tests and measurements to optimize cardiovascular prevention management in young Pakistanis.

While Pakistan is the second-most populous country in South Asia, most of the data on the prevalence of ASCVD from South Asian regions is derived from India. As a result, the Pakistani Population is highly underrepresented in global research, as there is currently no comprehensive database on the native Pakistani Population to assess the likelihood of developing ASCVD. Due to this high burden of disease, there is an urgent need for primary prevention and early screening for ASCVD in Pakistan. 

The findings from a study of this scale can provide groundbreaking results. It would help in informing future health policy targeting the native Pakistani Population, and it would allow early interventions for patients with risk of ASCVD from a younger age. Getz Pharma and Tabba Heart Institute are proud to lead an initiative of this scale with the aim to contribute to the growing research database in Pakistan and promote early screening and prevention for cardiovascular diseases in the country.

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6 ways to eat your way to better mental health

 

From a young age, we are taught that eating well helps us look and feel our physical best. What we are not always told is that good nutrition significantly affects our mental health, too.

A healthy, well-balanced diet can help us think clearly and feel more alert.

It can also improve concentration and attention span.

Cookbook author Chantal Lascaris shares below six helpful (and admittedly, delicious) suggestions to keep in mind when it comes to eating your way to improve mental and physical well-being.

Eat your vegetables – raw

From the staples lettuce and spinach to chopped carrots and cucumber, raw vegetables are packed with fibre and plant compounds that offer an array of benefits for your health.

Skeptical?

You don’t just need to take the salad queen’s words for it – a study of 422 young adults found that eating raw vegetables was associated with good mental health and mood.

Go nuts

While you may not have previously thought to include nuts and seeds in your salads, options like pistachios, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, almonds, and peanuts, all make for highly nutritious additions!

A word of caution, however, is to look for the raw or dry-roasted varieties to ensure you aren’t crunching on something that’s loaded with added salt, sugar, and other preservatives.

A protein fix

Eating salads doesn’t mean that you need to cut chicken, fish, or meat from your diet.

Several studies have shown a direct link between meat consumption and lower levels of depression and anxiety.

Right as grain

Adding whole grains, such as cooked brown rice, quinoa, and barley, to your salads brings a new texture to the dish, with a variety of new flavours as well.

Available at most grocery stores, they’re a good source of fibre and protein, helping you to feel full and satisfied for longer.

A fruitful outcome

Even though most people tend to think of salads as a combination of vegetables, fresh fruit can be added as a different and delicious topping – with added health benefits!

The nutrients found in both fruit and vegetables can have a positive impact on our brain chemistry, which in turn positively influences our mood, memory, and cognitive abilities.

A diet that’s high in these things also tends to reduce the risk of being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder – making regular salads as good for you, as they are to eat!

Herbs and more herbs

You’re likely no stranger to using herbs to add flavour or fragrance to a dish.

And doing so with your salads brings its own benefits.

Fresh herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, parsley, sage, and coriander, bring unique flavours to any salad, as well as some interesting health effects.

Research has shown, for example, that a compound in rosemary and sage may have anticancer properties, while cilantro may help to fight inflammation.

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Courtesy iol

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Ground Breaking of PIMS Maternal and Child Health Center Expansion

ISLAMABAD, OCT 21: Construction of the extension of Intensive Care at Maternal and Child Care Centre and Children’s Hospital was launched at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad.

The grant assistance from Japan worth $32 million (3.62 billion Japanese Yen) was signed in Tokyo two years ago.     

On this special occasion, MATSUDA Kuninori, Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan, expressed his respect to all those who worked hard to start this project amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to this, in this August, Japan extended another grant assistance of $31.4 million to establish a new Maternal and Child Health Center at Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences in Hyderabad.

Ambassador MATSUDA commented, “PIMS and Liaquat University are symbols of Japan's health development assistance to Pakistan in the north and south of the country, respectively.

I am sure that the two institutions will make a significant contribution to the improvement of maternal and child health as regional medical hubs.”

Chief Representative of JICA Pakistan Office, FURUTA Shigeki also remarked, “The project has been long-awaited in order to respond to the growing needs of clinically high-risk perinatal cases from all over Pakistan.

In this project, high quality medical treatment will be provided to severely ill mothers and children, accommodating 300 patients at Maternal Foetal Intensive Care unit, and 1,100 patients at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit a year.”

According to the current plan, the construction will be completed in April 2023.

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Japan provides equipment worth USD 6.59 million for Pakistan’s COVID-19 response

ISLAMABAD, OCT 21: Cold chain optimization equipment worth USD 6.59 million funded by the Government of Japan and procured through the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for enhancing national capacity to store COVID-19, was today handed over to the Government of Pakistan.

The Parliamentary Secretary on Health, Dr. Nausheen Hamid received the cold chain equipment from the Ambassador of Japan, MATSUDA Kuninori, in presence of the UNICEF Representative in Pakistan, Aida Girma, at a ceremony held in the National Emergency Operation Centre, Expanded Programme for Immunization (EPI).

“We greatly value the significant contributions made by Japan during the last 70 years of its diplomatic relations with Pakistan,” said Dr. Nausheen Hamid. “Over the years, our two countries have partnered in various sectors including health, education, power and many other. I affirm our strong desire to further deepen and broaden our bilateral ties with Japan.”

“The Expanded Programme for Immunization in Pakistan has a strong cold chain system that is considered the backbone of the programme as it handles and stores massive quantities of vaccines inclusive of all kinds of COVID-19 vaccines.

It is, however, important to know that the cold chain system can be risky in countries which have extreme temperatures and the power supply is unreliable. I am grateful to the Government of Japan for providing this cold chain optimization equipment for vaccine storage and ensuring quality check as it would definitely strengthen our existing system,” she added.

The equipment procured through funds from Japan, include power generators, voltage regulators and temperature monitoring devices which will enhance vaccine storage capacity of EPI, especially at provincial and district level where power outage and voltage fluctuation is frequent.

The new equipment would help to ensure optimum temperature control at storage facilities thus maintaining the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccine. 

Japanese funds will also be used for strengthening the capacity of health care staff to handle the cold chain equipment.

Japan has extended a total of $23.5 million grant assistance to Pakistan for its counter-COVID19 measures including provision of hygiene items, medical equipment, and training of health care staff.

Speaking at the event, Ambassador MATSUDA stressed that Japan has prioritized the health sector as part of its development cooperation policy for Pakistan for decades, including Maternal & Child Health, Polio Eradication, Routine Immunization and Counter-COVID-19 measures.

He expressed his hope to open a new area of cooperation in the future partnership between Japan and Pakistan in the health sector, suggesting that tackling diabetes could be one of the candidates.

 “I am looking forward to seeing a new chapter added to the friendship between Japan and Pakistan on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year,” the ambassador said.

As part of COVID 19 pandemic response UNICEF has been assisting the Government of Pakistan in procuring CoVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility.

It has also procured cold chain, laboratory and personal protective equipment and handed over to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination.

“Today’s ceremony reinforces the high level and longstanding support of the Government of Japan to UNICEF in its efforts to procure vaccines and essential equipment for strengthening immunization services in Pakistan,” said Aida Girma, UNICEF Representative in Pakistan.

“May it be routine immunization or the large-scale COVID-19 vaccination drive, storage of vaccines at optimum temperature is essential to maintain their efficacy and effectiveness.

The cold chain support equipment being handed over to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination today, will help in making vaccines available to people across the country, especially the marginalised and those living in hard to reach areas, Ms. Girma said.”

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