LAHORE, Punjab: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif inaugurated a heart transplant centre at the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology, with the Punjab government promising free procedures for eligible patients.
The provincial government described the Maryam Nawaz Sharif Heart Transplant Centre as Pakistan’s first facility of its kind.
Maryam Nawaz said the Punjab government would bear the full cost of treatment for deserving patients. She said a heart transplant can cost up to $50,000, while the use of Chinese technology could reduce the expense to about $10,000 per procedure.
During the inauguration, the chief minister inspected the transplant unit, angiography suite, diagnostic rooms, outpatient department and modular operating theatre.
The facility also includes a heart-lung machine, MRI equipment and other cardiac treatment technology, according to the provincial government.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari said the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology had started operations and would provide heart transplant treatment free of charge.
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Bukhari said the facility was developed to address Lahore’s growing population and reduce pressure on the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC).
She also said the 1,000-bed Nawaz Sharif Cancer Hospital would be inaugurated soon, while work on a cardiology hospital in Sargodha was nearing completion.
