PhD Holder Heading Nursing Services Division at AKUH

AKU achieved yet another distinction in the field of nursing when its Hospital became the first in the country with a Pakistani PhD holder heading the Nursing Services Division.

Dr Khurshid Khowaja, who has been Director of Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) Nursing Services Division since 2001, recently completed her PhD from the University of Ballarat, Australia. Balancing work and PhD studies with family commitments was no mean feat but then Dr Khowaja has been a dynamic leader since her school days. She was the first girl from Tando Bago, a remote town in Sindh’s district Badin, to complete matriculation from a predominantly boys school, clinching second position in Hyderabad.

She subsequently did her bachelors in economics in 1978 from the Hyderabad education board. Although communicating in English with foreign teachers at the University’s School of Nursing was a challenge in the early days, she nonetheless earned a gold medal along with her nursing diploma from AKU-SON. In addition, she completed a diploma in midwifery in first division from Kharadar Maternity Home in 1985. She subsequently served as Head Nurse, Assistant Manager and Associate Director before becoming a Director at AKUH.

Courageous individuals have effected significant change in the profession of nursing, women like Florence Nightingale, who reformed nursing care, and Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. “Likewise, AKUH nurses serving in clinical, administrative and academic roles can have a major impact on nursing in Pakistan,” says Dr Khowaja. “They can serve as role models and inspire others.”