Section
Health
Hospitals, outbreaks, polio, medicines and the distance between a village and a specialist.
Islamabad carries out first robotic gallbladder surgery by telesurgery
The Associated Press of Pakistan called it a first for the capital while UrduPoint billed it as Pakistan's first, and neither named the hospital, surgeons or patient
Health minister says barcode scan will flag fake medicines from November
Mustafa Kamal told the National Assembly that hospitals will also have to buy all vaccines from Pakistan's own funds by 2030, at a cost of about $1.2 billion.
Punjab healthcare commission makes uniforms mandatory for hospital staff
Doctors will wear blue, paramedical staff green and laboratory workers white coats under directives issued under Section 4(2)(o) of the PHC Act 2010
Balochistan dismisses 72 more doctors, total reaches 200
Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti says Rs410m has been deducted from salaries and 11,000 staff issued show-cause notices, while the Express Tribune reports 102 dismissals.
KP health commission seals 1,465 illegal medical centres in three months
Inspectors checked 6,673 facilities across the province and issued explanation notices to 2,668 centres, the commission's performance report says.
PM orders free treatment at revived Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital
The 182-bed facility, gifted by China during the COVID-19 pandemic and idle for years, will be run by the Indus Hospital and Health Network with the government paying patients' bills.
3,900 children registered HIV-positive in 18 months, National Assembly told
Sindh recorded 1,915 cases and Punjab 1,765, the health minister's written reply says, with Gilgit-Baltistan reporting one.
Punjab approves Rs1.10bn for CT scanners at three hospitals
The government has not named the three public hospitals, given a purchase timetable or said how the Rs1.10 billion will be divided between them.
Abbottabad launches polio drive targeting 217,917 children
Officials have formed 1,685 teams across 54 union councils, including 1,570 mobile units, to reach children under five at their doors.
Over 32 million Pakistanis affected by mental health disorders, NA told
Health ministry figures put the number of registered psychiatrists at 1,050 nationwide, while AIOU marks World Mental Health Day with an awareness seminar.
Journalists' health insurance scheme to launch soon, information secretary says
Ashfaq Ahmed Khalil told an APNEC Gilgit-Baltistan oath-taking ceremony in Islamabad the scheme would return in improved form, without giving a date.
Punjab adds Rs5bn for stroke care and 15 new centres
Maryam Nawaz says the money will widen treatment beyond the province's 40 stroke centres, with heart transplants due soon at the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology.
Kasur family dies after eating kheer; death toll disputed
Rescue teams shifted the family from Kanganpur to Lahore hospitals after they fell ill; a lizard is suspected in the dish but no cause is officially confirmed.
Health ministry scraps vaccine tender for pilgrims and overseas workers
A fresh tender for meningococcal and influenza jabs is due within a month, while seven firms have gone to the Islamabad High Court over the bidding.
Pakistan signs MoU with Denmark's ICARS to curb poultry antibiotic use
The three-year project, led by the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, will test organic acids as an antibiotic substitute on 30 poultry farms.
Seven killed as oxygen cylinder blast sets Tharparkar ambulance on fire
Four health centre employees, a pregnant woman and two attendants died of burn injuries after the cylinder exploded while staff were replacing it.
Air pollution cuts Pakistani life expectancy by 3.9 years, report finds
PAQI's national emissions inventory puts the annual economic cost at 6.5pc of GDP and warns Lahore residents could lose up to seven years.
Ghanche deputy commissioner flags shortage of specialist doctors at Khaplu Hospital
Daily Independent reported the shortfall at the district headquarters hospital but gave no number of vacant posts, the specialities affected, or when the complaint was made.
Karachi hospitals report sharp rise in flu cases as H1N1 circulates
Doctors at Aga Khan University Hospital, Civil Hospital and JPMC say daily patient loads have doubled, with about 400 influenza cases recorded at AKUH this year.
Woman needs second surgery after towel left in abdomen at Chunian hospital
Punjab's chief minister and the Kasur deputy commissioner have taken notice as two outlets report an inquiry into alleged medical negligence.
Seven PIMS officers charge-sheeted over nursery fire that killed 14 newborns
Ministry charge sheets dated October 23 accuse the executive director of skipping fire drills and inspections, and cite two fires at the hospital within a month.
Women-led Karachi motorcycle rally pushes breast cancer awareness
Riders travelled from Z Volta's headquarters along Shahrah-e-Faisal to Avari Tower and back, with a surgeon briefing participants on early detection.
Chak Shahzad's 250-bed hospital ready to receive patients
The facility, formerly called Margalla Hospital, has been renamed Pak-China Friendship Hospital to acknowledge Chinese funding for its construction.
Balochistan doctors announce province-wide strike from November 1
The PMA's provincial chapter backs the walkout over FBR and Balochistan Revenue Authority taxes it calls unjust, after a joint meeting in Quetta.
Lahore seals 40 illegal clinics, medical stores and labs in four days
UrduPoint reports the four-day drive covered unregistered clinics, pharmacies and diagnostic laboratories, but does not name the enforcing department or the areas involved.
Islamabad reissues ban on selling pregabalin without prescription
The capital's health department has told licensed pharmacies to dispense the medicine only against valid prescriptions, citing a July 10 directive.
Sindh offers NICVD support to upgrade GB cardiac hospital
Murad Ali Shah proposes an MoU between the Gilgit-Baltistan government and the Karachi institute after GB chief minister Amjad Hussain Azar seeks help with facilities.
PM orders inquiry into PIMS fire safety failures
A charge sheet says corrective action after the 6 July nursing hostel fire could have prevented the August blaze that killed 14 newborns
Minister directs DRAP to clear pending drug pricing cases
Ahad Cheema, chairing a review meeting in Islamabad, said the pricing formula must be people-centred and must not block importers or pharmaceutical firms.
KP dengue tally reaches 4,856 as October peak drives new infections
Kohat alone accounts for 2,822 of the province's cases, with Peshawar at 611 and Khyber at 430, the provincial surveillance report shows.