Govt approves advanced heart failure programme at NICVD

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has approved the establishment of an Advanced Heart Failure Programme at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), based on Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) technology, and authorised the institute to begin preparations for a future heart transplant programme.

The decisions were taken at the 85th meeting of the NICVD Governing Body, chaired by the chief minister at his office on Monday. CM Shah described the initiative as a major step towards advanced cardiac care and directed the NICVD administration to collaborate with leading institutions in the country and abroad for technical assistance, training and capacity building.

He said the provincial government would continue supporting NICVD to ensure free and quality cardiac treatment for deserving patients from Sindh and other parts of the country.

The meeting was informed that NICVD provided a record volume of specialised services in 2025, including 9,279 primary PCIs, 3,069 paediatric catheterisations and interventions, 291 PTMC procedures, 40 TAVI procedures, 5,649 early invasive procedures and 889 elective angioplasties.

The institute also performed more than 1,400 cardiac surgeries, besides conducting 296,731 emergency consultations, 443,610 OPD consultations, 18,875 angiographies, 54,295 admissions and 88,165 echocardiography examinations. Officials said NICVD treated more than 1.32 million patients from outside Sindh between 2019 and 2025, including those from Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The Governing Body also approved the voluntary appointment of US-based cardiologist Prof Javed Suleman as Professor of Cardiology and Medical Director at NICVD, without any financial liability for the institute or the Sindh government.

It approved the recruitment of a Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, both in BPS-19, on two-year contracts, and sanctioned a new Medical Officer post in BPS-17 for the Paediatric Cardiology Department.

The meeting reviewed progress on major expansion projects, including a 300-bed, seven-storey paediatric cardiology unit with five operating theatres, four catheterisation laboratories, a hybrid laboratory and advanced diagnostic facilities. Officials also briefed the meeting about a new 100-bed cardiac emergency centre and a 59,000-square-foot outpatient department.

CM Shah directed the NICVD administration to complete all ongoing projects within the stipulated timelines and maintain international standards of patient care.