LAHORE - Save the Children, in collaboration with Integrated Reproductive Maternal Newborn Child Health and Nutrition Program Punjab and Reckitt Benckiser, arranged a ceremony on Friday to give away awards to best Lady Health Workers (LHWs) from 36 districts of Punjab.
LHWs were honoured in acknowledgement of their dedicated services for improving Mother and Child Health and Primary Health Care in Punjab. These best performing LHWs were nominated for the prestigious awards based on their performance while saving lives of mothers and children mostly in daunting circumstances.
Adviser to Chief Minister Punjab on Health Kh Salman Rafiq was the chief guest. The officers of different departments and representatives of Non-governmental organizations attended the function.
Kh Salman Rafiq praised LHWs for their outstanding performance. He said, “The LHWs are our real heroes whose efforts are never highlighted. We must acknowledge and appreciate their dedicated efforts and spirit to serve humanity while facing all adverse circumstances. Government will increase the numbers of LHWs to benefit larger population. LHWs have sacrificed their lives to safeguard the healthy future of others children during polio campaigns in KPK and Sindh”.
Director Save the Children Pakistan Dr Masood Abbasi thanked all the government departments of Punjab for their support and ownership of Save Children’s ongoing Diarrhoea Prevention and Control Program in Punjab. He said, “Together with Reckitt Benckiser we are committed to deliver our best in the ongoing Diarrhoea Prevention and Control Program by making some new interventions. The role of LHWs will be of immense significance in making this program successful in Hafizabad and Khanewal districts. There is a need to facilitate and train them.”
World Parkinson's Day today
Like other parts of the globe, World Parkinson's Day will be observed across the country including Lahore today (Saturday) to raise awareness about the disease, promoting a greater understanding of this condition and how it can affect a person.
Parkinson's is a disease in which nerve cells that deliver the neurotransmitter dopamine to other cells are reduced in numbers. As cell death spreads to ever larger parts of the brain more centers are affected. This results in an aggravation of motor and non motor disorders. Seminars, workshops and free medical camps will be arranged at the government and private levels to raise awareness about the disease, handling of affected persons and early treatment. Over four lakh people in Pakistan are suffering from Parkinson while patients across the globe are over six million. Principal Post Graduate Medical Institute & Ameer Uddin Medical College Prof Anjum Habib Vohra said that Parkinson was curable and such medicines were available which could curb this ailment.
“World Parkinson Day requires us to spread maximum awareness about this disease among the masses. Medical professionals must focus on research to find out remedy to this sickness. Usually old people fall prey to this disease. However young people can also suffer from it. The muscles and nerves of such patient weaken and his body trembles”, he said.
Dr Khalid Mahmood, pioneer of DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) operation in Pakistan, said that a revolution has come into the medical science and now treatment and cure of this disease was possible through surgery and medicine. He further said that encouragement of Parkinson patient was crucial as willpower could play a vital role in recovery process.
He said that although treatment charges through DBS were low in Pakistan as compare to other countries but even then it was not affordable for a common man. He urged philanthropists and social organizations to come forward to help patients of Parkinson in their treatment.