After delays: PIMS cardiac and organ transplant centre opens

The project was completed in six years at the cost of Rs1.26b.

ISLAMABAD:

The much-awaited Cardiac and Organ Transplant Centre at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) was inaugurated by Prime Minister (PM) Raja Parvaiz Ashraf on Thursday. The multi-billion project took about six years to complete.

The centre has been completed at a cost of Rs1.26 billion and will be fully functional by next week, said Pims Executive Director Riaz Ahmed Warraich.

He added that the delay in construction deprived scores of cardiac patients from surgery and other treatment facilities. However, all such patients will now be given priority in treatment, he said.

The centre will conduct over 3,000 cardiac surgeries and handle over 20,000 patients every year, said Warraich. Poor patients will be treated free of charge.

He said to facilitate the expected large number of patients, the Pims administration is recruiting additional 26 staff on contracts for which they have taken permission from PM Ashraf.



Furthermore, the Rescue in Cardiology service, also part of the project, will be started soon. At the initial stage four fully-equipped ambulances will be parked at different areas of the capital and will have a direct link with Rescue 1122. The patients will be picked up from their homes and will be provided first aid while they get to the emergency department.

The project was inauguranted in 2006 by former PM Shaukat Aziz and was scheduled for completion in 2007.

The second deadline for the project was set in 2008. This deadline also passed due to a number of management issues and alleged embezzlement.

Taking notice of the delays, the Capital Administration and Development Minister Nazar Muhammad Gondal constituted an inquiry committee in August 2012.

The members of the committee are from the Federal Investigation Agency, Capital Development Authority, Pims and Ministry of Capital Administration and Development. Warraich said the inquiry is still in progress and the findings will be shared “soon”.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 21^st, 2012.