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Dubai: Pakistan community raises funds for biggest charity hospital back home

Dubai - The event also saw felicitations of around 15 Pakistani students in UAE, who managed to raise Dh94,000 for the cause.

Over 300 members of the Pakistani community gathered for a fundraising gala dinner to rally support for the expansion of the Indus Hospital & Health Network- Pakistan (IHHN), the largest charity hospital network spread across Pakistan.

Located in the densely populated area of Korangi in Karachi, IHHN is a 300-bed tertiary care multidisciplinary hospital that offers premium healthcare to the public completely free of cost. It provides quality healthcare to millions of deserving patients through its countrywide network of hospitals in Pakistan.

IHHN organised a fundraiser on Thursday at Hilton Dubai, Al Habtoor City to finance a major expansion programme. The IACAD-approved fundraiser saw the Who’s Who from the Pakistani community in the UAE including business leaders, professionals and prominent individuals such as Afzaal Mahmood, Ambassador of Pakistan to the UAE, as well as Dr Abdul Bari Khan, CEO IHHN; and Dr Amber Rashid, Board of Director of IHHN. The event also saw the presence of Sheikh Saeed Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan.

Speaking to Khaleej Times, Dr Amber Rashid said: “The main aim of the fundraiser was to raise funds for a new 1,350-bed hospital, an extension of IHHN, including a medical school, nursing school and pharmacy, among others, that we aim to build by 2023. This will be the biggest charity hospital in Pakistan. Currently we have 30 primary care facilities across Pakistan and we are looking to expand these to 200 in the next two years.”

Global e-commerce based direct selling company, QNET, also took part in a gala dinner and fundraising event to provide community support to Indus Hospital in Pakistan.

“QNET is a company that put people empowerment at the centre of what it does. And we know well that there's no development without a solid healthcare support system. This is why we felt it was important to support Indus Hospital in Pakistan, a pillar of the community when it comes to bringing cure and care where they are most needed," said CEO of QNET, Malou Caluza.

We started our collaboration with Indus Hospital last year, and we are committed to helping people in Pakistan in line with our company mission to Raise Yourself to Help Mankind (RYTHM)", she concluded.

QNET has worked with multiple community programs and organisations  around the world. The assistance provided to Indus hospital is part of the company’s corporate social responsibility. In the past, QNET has collaborated and supported the Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN) at Korangi Campus in Karachi.

The event also saw felicitations of around 15 Pakistani students in the UAE, who were part of the IHHN’s youth ambassador programme, where they managed to raise Dh94,000 by encouraging their network of family and friends to donate for the cause.

The event was hosted by famous Pakistani comedian and celebrity Shafaat Ali, and famous scriptwriter, satirist, humorist, and actor Anwar Maqsood

IHHN was founded in 2007 by Dr Bari with one hospital in Karachi. It now has multiple tertiary and secondary-care hospitals, physical rehabilitation centres, regional blood centres, community health centres, and various public health programmes across Pakistan.

The primary funding of the network comes from the Pakistani community inside the country and spread globally.

It is said to be serving around 500,000 patients monthly and has treated more than 10,500 children for cancer and blood diseases. The network has also provided nearly 9,000 patients with prosthetic and orthotic devices at no cost to patients and their families.

saman@khaleejtimes.com