LAHORE - The number of gastro patients is increasing in the country due to consumption of spicy meals and junk food etc.
This was stated by former principal King Edward Medical College (KEMC) and a leading professor of gastroentrology Prof Khawaja Saadiq Husain while talking to APP here on Sunday. He has the credit of launching first time gastroscopy in 1974 in Pakistan from King Edward Medical College (KEMC).
Commenting on the current standard of medical education, he said that CC virus engulfing the medical education sharply, explaining that CC virus as C for Commercialisation and other C for Corruption. He said that these two viruses had damaged the medical education and healthcare for the sake of money making.
He said that we have given up the art of medicine i.e giving sympathy, hope, attraction and encouragement to patient in his ailment and started reliance on modern medical equipment, tests and medication to treat patient.
About quota system in medical colleges, Prof Saadiq Khawaja supported the quota system and said that because female doctors always reluctant to perform at far-flung areas and villages which would destroy the medical healthcare infrastructure at Basic Health Units (BHUs) and Rural Health Centres (RHCs) where male doctors availabe to some extent to perform at such backward areas.
About the mushroom growth of private medical colleges, he said that many private medical colleges have no hospital and giving admission to medical students and running the colleges on commercial basis. Pakistan Medical and Dental Council should take notice of absence of hospitals in private medical colleges instead of issuance of licenses to these colleges.
Pointing out a crucial matter of absence of life-saving drugs like Thyroxin, he informed that being a low price medicine having less margin of profit have made its absence because pharmaceutical companies are not interested to manufacture this low price medicine which is a matter of grave concern and should be highlighted in proper manner.
Prof. Saadiq Khawaja is a well disciplined personality as he never compromised on principles throughout his life.  During his principalship, he never allowed to postpone exams and condensed the MBBS course to five years which had been extended to seven years after many and  often postponments, he claimed.
This is the Prof Khawaja who first time started the workshops to teach the teachers of the medical education “How to teach the medical students in better way” as per the standard of World Health Organization (WHO) at KEMC.For that purposes, he also visited Germany,Bankok and Egypt. He also started to teach mdical students by launching evening classes at the KEMC.
Answering a question about what is difference between gastroscopy and gastroentrology? Prof Khawaja told that gastroscopy is a procedure while gastroentrology is a study of the digestive system and inside intestines from mouth to rectum/annus.
To another query about the number of gastro patients in the country, he opined that it was not easy to mention the exact number of patients as there was no any data available to collect the exact figure of patients, however, gastro related disease are very common in society.
Responding another question regarding the treatment of gastro diseases, Prof Khawaja told that due to modern medical equipment like endoscopes, it had become easy to diagnose and treat the patients suffering from gastro diseases.