Work on 250-bed emergency trauma unit begins

Rs7.75b project in Jinnah Hospital to be completed next year

LAHORE:

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar laid the foundation stone of a new Emergency and Trauma Centre at Jinnah Hospital on Saturday.

He announced on the occasion that the Emergency Block and Trauma Centre would be constructed at a cost of Rs7.75 billion and the project would be completed by June next year. The new facilities will have 250 beds on eight floors, including a basement.

The project includes departments of medical and surgery triage, intensive care (ICU) and high dependency units (HDU).

The chief minister said a 24-bed cardiology emergency service would also be set up.

He said three new emergency medical care blocks and trauma centres would be established in Lahore, which would have a capacity of 800 beds. He said that after Jinnah Hospital, a new emergency block would be set up in Services Hospital.

Chief Minister Buzdar said that over the past 30 years no new general hospital had been built in Lahore.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had started work on a new 1,000-bed general hospital on Ferozpur Road. He also mentioned the health card scheme launched the the government. The project of Rs400 billion was one of its kind, he added.

The chief minister said the Punjab government had made a substantial increase in the budget allocation for the health sector. Provincial Health Minister Dr Yasmeen Rashid and several other leaders and senior officials were present on the occasion.

Meanwhile, several elected representatives from various districts called on Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and expressed complete confidence over his leadership.

Those who met the chief minister included Latasib Sati, Pir Mukhtar, Mohiud Din Khosa, Sami Ullah Chaudhry and Syed Raza Bukhari.

The chief minister asserted on the occasion that those creating hindrance in national development would gain nothing and the government would continue to compete under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan with the "mafia".

He said the defeated elements would meet the same fate in the future as well. The opposition would face embarrassment and any effort to create political chaos and anarchy would be foiled, he added.

"We are united under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan and will remain united. The opposition, by creating political instability and anarchy, is playing with the future of the nation as creating hurdles in national progress is the main agenda of the opposition," he stated.

The chef minister said the government would deal with the alleged negative agenda of the opposition with the support of the people.

He maintained that defeat was the destiny of the opponents of the government, no matter how much resources they employed, because the public opinion was against them.

"The no-confidence motion will fail like every conspiracy hatched by the opposition," he claimed. The political situation and ongoing development projects came under discussion during the meetings.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 20^th, 2022.