LAHORE – Lahore’s Saira Memorial Hospital is set to become home to dozens of cancer patients within few months. The reason: It offers promising treatment at a very subsidized cost. Situated in Model Town, Saira Memorial Hospital is a multidisciplinary Cancer treatment and Clinical Haematology Centre established for providing holistic and affordable treatment to all cancer patients including solid tumours and Leukemia, Lymphomas and Myelomas. The services also cover benign Haematology including bleeding and clotting disorders. The Inpatient services are overseen by a highly trained team of Haematologists and Oncologists. The acute care services are available ‘24/7’ at the Centre. The Centre provides a wide range of facilities including dedicated chemotherapy infusion suites, separate positive pressure rooms with HEPA filtered air for leukaemia patients and a fully equipped pathology laboratory. The patients will enjoy an integrative approach to benefit from the expertise of various specialists including infectious disease physician, pain management services under the supervision of qualified Pain Care Specialist and nutritional support and interventions with a view to improving patient outcomes. Chemotherapy drugs are prepared by specially trained Pharmacists in a fully equipped pharmacy, built to highest standards, with a type 2 biological hood and HVAC system. In the most recent press releases, WHO indicated that over 8.8 million cancer deaths occur every year.
In Pakistan, the number of people diagnosed with cancer each year are increasing. A cancer mortality rate of 100,000 is itself proof of the devastated state of public health facilities. Being from low-middle income country, we don’t have much resources to treat such a huge number of cancer patients. According to International Atomic Energy Agency cancer assessment mission report (IAEA) dated 4thFeb 2016, 150,000 new cases of cancer are emerging in Pakistan every year which were 140,000 in 2015 as per the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHSRC) figures. All patients seeking care at Saira Memorial Hospital are provided the best possible care irrespective of their capacity to pay. Our ethos is to treat the patients with dignity and respect and, to ensure that all possible efforts are made, to achieve the best clinical outcome for our patients. Those patients who are not in a position to afford their treatment cost are divided into various categories depending on their financial circumstances. The patients who are able to pay a certain portion of their treatment cost are asked to contribute towards the expenses. Those patients, who are unable to make a contribution, are treated entirely free of cost. For determining the status of the patient’s paying capacity, their own word is considered sufficient, and to preserve their self respect and dignity, no intrusive enquiries are made to determine their circumstances. Working on his model since its inception, the Hospital is able to generate sufficient funds to sustain the delivery of subsidized and free healthcare to those who are in need of it. Authentic records of the free and subsidized treatment provided are meticulously maintained, with complete personal records and the treatment provided, along with the cost incurred. Every month hundreds of patients receive free and subsidized indoor and outdoor treatment at Saira Memorial Hospital which includes major and minor surgical procedures, gynaecology and obstetrical care, radiologic examination including colour Doppler ultrasonography, laboratory tests at our state of the art laboratory and provision of free medicines. operating as a Trust hospital and a substantial number of patients receive free of cost services. In year 2015, a record number of 20,000 plus patients received totally free outdoor care and treatment including free of cost medicines. Similarly, 1,100 patients were provided free or subsidized indoor treatment including free of cost surgeries. The Hospital is also running an outreach programme, with a free clinic at Multan Road, Lahore and a fortnightly free medical camp at Kot Nizam Din, a village 120 kms from Lahore. A large number of people benefit from this outreach service and we constantly work to expand the services provided at these facilities. The Hospital has recently concluded civil works on an additional 13,000 sq. feet. This area will house a state of the art ICU facility, a stroke and a cardiac centre. The approximate expense of wetting up this facility is in excess of Rs. 100.00 million and we look forward to the support of our benefactors and friends to join hands with us to make this dream a reality in the shortest possible time. In 1992 Saira Memorial Hospital started it journey as a single outdoor clinic and today is a multi-disciplinary healthcare provider recognized as a teaching hospital by Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, where thousands of patients are cared for in an atmosphere of compassion and dignity. While we bow our heads in gratitude to Almighty for his kindness, it would be in fitness of things to remember the commitment and efforts of the late Mr. Rafique Goheer, the Founding Chairman of the Board of Trustees and his son Dr. Ali Atif Goheir, CEO and Chairman, who left us for their heavenly abodes in 2013 in rapid succession. It is entirely due to the untiring efforts, and the expansion of hospital infra-structure and services launched by our late CEO and Chairman, Dr. Ali Atif Goheir, that the Hospital was in a position to provide indoor and outdoor treatment to nearly 90,000 patients in 2015. The numbers are steadily improving every year and we hope, when our current programme of expansion is complete, we will be able to cater to an even larger number of patients.
