Pediatric liver transplant: SC expresses dismay over lack of facilities at PKLI

The Supreme Court (SC) on Saturday expressed its dismay after being learnt that Pakistan Kidney-Liver Transplantation Institute (PKLI), lacked even basic facilities to carry out paediatric liver transplant. Prof Dr Huma Arshad Cheema of Children Hospital, also chairperson of Pakistan Paediatric Association Gastroenterology Hepatology told the court that the institute did not have pre-requisites of operation theatre, human resource and equipment for the liver transplant.
The chief justice hearing a matter regarding possibility of first paediatric liver transplant of Pakistan observed that billions of rupees had been spent on the institute and it had no facilities.
The court lamented that no effort had been made for the children of the country suffering from liver diseases. The court said our children were forced to go to India for liver transplant after undergoing an embarrassing process of getting visa for the neighbouring country.
Even liver transplant facilities available for adults were also not up to the mark, the chief justice regretted.
The chief justice observed that it was a wish of the Supreme Court to have a first ever paediatric liver transplant surgery of Pakistan in before the last week of December.
Prof Cheema stated that no civilian health facility was capable to do the paediatric liver transplant, however, a hospital in Rawalpindi run by military had been carrying out such surgeries.
At this, the chief justice said the court would establish contact with the Surgeon General of Pakistan Army for this purpose and rose for Sunday (today). The chief justice also directed the NAB to hold inquiry against an officer of the PKLI, Dr Amir, and also put his name on ECL.