Pakistan’s first Modern Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital is being built at the location of Gadap Town, Karachi by an American-based organization, The Children of Adam.
The ground breaking ceremony was held on Tuesday where Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah participated as chief guest. Other Provincial Ministers, including Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho, Nasir Shah, Murtaza Wahab, MNA Hakim Baloch, and some other MPAs and assistant to CM were also part of the event.
Children of Adam (CoA) aims to build not only a 150 bed hospital providing services to inpatient and outpatients but rather it aims to establish a state-of-the-art Neuro-Psychiatric Institute with a center that will focus on personalized medicine, brain stimulation, and pediatric and geriatric mental health.
It was revealed that the center will also provide the following services:
- Bipolar disorders
- Autistic disorders/MR/Pervasive developmental disorders
- Schizophrenic disorders
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Electroconvulsive Therapy
- Rehabilitation services
- Magnetic seizure therapy (MST)
- Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
- Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)
On establishment it will be considered the best research hospital in Pakistan. The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 4 Billion. It will not only be a mental service provide but will also cater drug and alcohol addict.
As it is being established by philanthropists it is expected that the fees, charges and prices for different tests will be either nominal or the services will be provided free of cost.
At the event Chief Minister discussed how the government is prioritizing health care facilities. He claimed that the government has established 31 new hospitals with 701 beds. He further explained that government not only constructed new hospitals but also upgraded and expanded 108 existing hospitals with 771 beds. He also added that Rs 23.334 billion has been allocated in the budget of 2022-23 for the health sector.
Murad Ali Shah highlighted the problem of lack of trained psychiatrists, psychologists, and counsellors. Discussing the issue he said: “As per statistics, in Pakistan, over 15 million people are suffering from some form of mental illness. However, only a small percentage of people suffering from mental health conditions are able to seek the proper help they need.”
