Urgent Need for Faculty at KIHD to Improve Patient Care

KARACHI: Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases (KIHD) has an immediate need for a proper operational faculty to help improve patient care provided in the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) run cardiovascular diseases hospital.

KIHD currently requires ten professors and ten consultants to cater to heart disease patients. Only two full-time consultants are working at the facility at present with an additional five professors working on an honorary basis post-retirement. The hospital is also in dire need of skilled nurses, paramedical staff and additional faculty to effectively manage visiting and admitted patients with cardiac problems.

KIHD is a teaching hospital that comprises of a fully equipped Emergency Room, a Cardiac Care Unit (CCU), Medical Wards, Surgical wards, Private Wards, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, Surgical Theaters, ECHO, ETT and Nuclear Imaging Department, Rehabilitation Center, Research Department and Laboratory for routine investigations.

Owing to the unavailability of proper patient care staff and medication, visiting and admitted patients have been dealing with grave hardships. Approximately 250 to 300 patients are brought in for treatment in the emergency department daily. The ongoing financial crisis, however, has gravely affected the proper functioning of the hospital since the past several years.

Deputy Director (Admin), KIHD, Dr Azhar Hayat stated that the KIHD caters to emergency and OPD patients on limited resources but desperately requires manpower to improve patient care on an urgent basis. There are 65 doctors working at KIHD at present, but the management needs more consultants and professors on board to ensure smooth operations.