Unicef to design Peshawar Children’s Hospital

PESHAWAR: Unicef will help design the Peshawar Children’s Hospital so that the facility presents the feel of a children’s park rather than a conventional hospital, according to Dr Mohammad Rafiq, chairman of the Board of Governors of the Khyber Institute of Child Health (KICH) and Children’s Hospital, Peshawar.

Dr Rafiq said the hospital, which is being developed as a fully dedicated paediatric facility, would receive interior design support from a Unicef team coming from Lahore. He said the provincial government had promised Rs2.1 billion for equipment and other items, adding that the amount was expected within a fortnight.

He also said supply orders had already been placed in an effort to make the long-delayed hospital operational within a month and a half. According to him, the communication and works department has been asked to complete the civil works quickly so the project can move to its final, fixed design stage.

Attributing the details to the planning process, Dr Rafiq said expert designers would prepare videos of the proposed layouts and appearances for final selection by the hospital authorities.

“Being a 100pc Children’s Hospital, all its buildings will wear a fantastic look when its interior designing is finished. The Unicef is sending a team of experts from Lahore to give a fascinating shape to the facility for which the government has promised to provide Rs2.1 billion for equipment and other goods.” he said, speaking about the design concept.

“It will look like a park and will be eye-catching,” he added.

Funding and delayed completion

KICH and its affiliated Children’s Hospital were approved by the federal government more than 10 years ago, but the project could not be completed because funding remained insufficient. Dr Rafiq said the remaining Rs2.1 billion was originally to be released by the federal government, but the provincial government agreed to provide bridge financing, with the money to be returned to the province once the Centre releases the funds.

He said the hospital should have been completed much earlier, and that the delay had not only increased costs but also affected children’s health. He added that the current government had recognised the importance of the facility and wanted to make it functional as early as possible.

Support from UN agencies and recruitment plans

Dr Rafiq said UN agencies had also promised extensive support once the hospital begins operations. According to him, some organisations would provide ambulances free of cost, while others would set up a neonatal ward, an operating theatre and a burns ward at the 300-bed hospital so that child patients could access the services they need.

He said those organisations would not only establish the relevant wards and theatres but also run them for five years. Referring to future plans after the hospital becomes functional, he said that “After completion of all work and operationalisation of the hospital, they will hold a donor conference to get more state-of-the-art machines and facilities for the hospital. As per our programme, we are on our way to get top equipment on the pattern of European hospitals and children get the services which are not available in other cities of the country.”

Dr Rafiq also said recruitment orders for executives would be issued soon, adding that interviews had already been conducted but appointment letters were delayed because the funds had not yet been released.

He noted that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the only province without a dedicated children’s hospital, while families who can afford it take children to other provinces for treatment. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Paediatric Association welcomed the government’s move to ensure funding for the facility, saying the hospital would also support specialised paediatric training for doctors, nurses and paramedics and benefit children across the province.