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Building to house state-of-the-art laboratory services, doubling
capacity up to 10 million tests annually
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in Urdu
Karachi, Aug 14, 2005. Dr Ishrat Husain, Governor State Bank of Pakistan,
was the chief guest at the inauguration of the new Soparivala Building
at Aga Khan University (AKU), which was timed to coincide with the
Independence Day celebrations. The Soparivala Building, named after
the Soparivala estate generously gifted to AKU, will house the new
clinical laboratories. The new laboratories will double Aga Khan University
Hospital's (AKUH) existing medical test processing capacity to 10
million tests annually.
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| Dr
Ishrat Husain, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, was the chief
guest at the inauguration of the new Soparivala Building, which
will house the clinical laboratories. |
"In view of the limited health care and diagnostic services in
Pakistan, the new clinical laboratories are a much-needed facility,"
noted Dr Husain. He praised the University for its role-model endeavours
towards improving health care and education and commented, 'I wish
His Highness the Aga Khan had established AKU fifty years earlier,
which would have meant a significantly larger number of high calibre
professionals in service of Pakistan today. Dr Husain emphasised the
importance of AKU's forthcoming Faculty of Arts and Sciences, which,
he said, would notably enhance the quality of human resources in Pakistan
and encouraged the Government to give full assistance to the project
for its timely completion. Dr Husain also commended the Soparivala
family for their philanthropic bequest to the University, which has
been described as "the largest single donation AKU has received
so far outside of the Ismaili community in Pakistan."
"The University is receiving increasing support from a cross-section
of society, as evidenced by more than Rs. 650 million donated over
the last three years from a wide range of corporate and individual
donors," said AKU President Shamsh Kassim-Lakha, H.I., S.I, in
his address. "These donations are an expression of trust in AKU
as a national institution, advancing the cause of health and education
programmes and services for the benefit of the entire country,"
President Kassim-Lakha observed.
Admiring the benevolence of Noshir and Mehroo Soparivala, President
Kassim-Lakha expressed his gratitude to Mrs Mehroo Soparivala, who
upon her death in 1993, gifted a considerable estate to AKU in the
form of a building, equities and personal effects, which after liquidation
amounted to US $2 million. The total cost of the Building, after the
formation of the clinical laboratory that is expected to be completed
over the next 18 months, will be Rs. 350 million (US $5.9 million),
of which the University will provide Rs. 234 million (US $3.9 million).
A separate endowment from the Soparivala family, valued at Rs. 8.4
million, also contributes to AKU's Patient Welfare programme, which
provides assistance to under-privileged patients.
"AKUH has established a reputation for high-quality diagnostic services,
based upon its adherence to international standards, its use of first-class
equipment, and its highly trained personnel," said Nadeem Mustafa
Khan, CEO and Director General of AKUH. The state-of-the-art laboratory
will play a vital role in augmenting the diagnostic services, as a
part of an outreach programme that has seen the Hospital's services
being offered in 30 cities across Pakistan through a network of over
70 blood and specimen collection or phlebotomy centres.
The ceremony was attended by prominent citizens, academics, businesspersons,
opinion leaders, media personnel as well as AKU faculty and staff,
representing a multi-section of communities.
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