Bilawal inaugurates Rs500m OPD complex at Dow Hospital.

KARACHI -- Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday inaugurated a new outpatient department (OPD) complex at Dow Hospital, Ojha campus.

Accompanied by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and other officials, Mr Bhutto-Zardari inaugurated the OPD complex comprising four blocks, built at a cost of Rs500 million, and performed the groundbreaking ceremony of an oncology unit after planting a tree.

Speaking on the occasion, the PPP chairman extended congratulations and best wishes to the Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) and hospital staff for delivering quality liver transplant services in the city.

'We can strengthen our healthcare system and improve the delivery of healthcare by joining hands with well-trained human resources. The government has always made an effort to bring an improvement in the healthcare system for the benefit of the common man,' he said.

He also announced that the provincial government would bear the cost of 100 liver transplants being planned at the hospital.

Speaking on the occasion, CM Shah said his government firmly believed that affordable and high-quality healthcare was a fundamental privilege of every citizen.

'It's not only ethically and socially imperative, but also a necessary ingredient for sustainable development of our economies and society,' he said, adding that it's a privilege to stand before healthcare workers who had worked tirelessly to provide quality healthcare, especially during the pandemic.

About the challenges being faced by the healthcare system, Mr Shah said the foremost challenge was providing adequate health coverage and equal access to medical services for all.

'When citizens have to pay out of their pockets, they may delay or relinquish necessary treatments, risking their lives or increasing their vulnerability to chronic diseases requiring costly, long-term care,'...