LAHORE   -  Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif Monday officially launched ‘Chief Minister’s Children’s Heart Sur­gery Programme’ for the free treat­ment and surgery of children with heart disease during her visit to La­hore’s Children’s Hospital Cardiac Surgery Ward. The chief minister dis­tributed ‘Child Surgery Cards’ among the deserving patients under the Pro­gramme. She said the operation of a sick child will be done in a private hospital if there is no place in the gov­ernment hospitals. She inspected HDU and other departments of the hospital, and reviewed various facilities avail­able in the cardiac surgery ward.

Madam chief minister inquired about the well-being of the young pa­tients, gave them gifts and also played Ludo with them. She interacted with the children, and prayed, “May Al­lah grant you health, we all pray for you.” She also talked to the parents of the sick children, and inquired about the availability of various facilities. “It is my mission to free every citizen of Punjab, including children, from the system of queues and waiting. The number of specialist surgeons and al­lied staff will be increased to multiply the capacity of pediatric heart surgery in government hospitals,” she said.

The CM further stated that in the first phase pediatric heart surgery fa­cility was being provided in six gov­ernment and designated private hos­pitals including PIC and Children’s Hospital Lahore, Multan’s Children’s and PIC, and Faisalabad and Rawal­pindi Cardiology Institutes. In the second phase, she said, facilities for pediatric heart surgery will also be provided in the hospitals of Wa­zirabad, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawal­pur and Sargodha. She also observed the dashboard developed to monitor the Programme. Madam chief min­ister said she was extremely happy to launch the project as a moth­er, not as the Chief Minister. She added,” I can understand the shock that mothers go through on the death of a child.”