The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan (CPSP) President Professor M Sultan Farooqui has said there was a dire need to collectively work towards solving the issues of critical care management through research and medical education, says a press release issued here on Friday.
Professor Farooqui was addressing the three-day symposium as the chief guest at the inaugural session of 1st International Critical Care Symposium organised by the Aga Khan University (AKU) Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, the release added. The symposium was being held in collaboration with the Department of Medicine and Critical Care Nursing - Section of Pulmonary and Critical Care on Friday.
Renowned physicians and nurses from Pakistan, UK, Europe, USA, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India are attending the symposium to address a variety of critical care topics including clinical care, nutrition, ethical issues, quality of care, manpower and infection control.
Keynote speakers include Professor Rehana S Kamal Aga Khan University; Professor Jan Wemerman Karolinska University Hospital Huddinge Stockholm Sweden; Dr Deepthi Attygallc Postgraduate Institute of Medicine Sri Lanka; Dr David Ray Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Scotland; and Dr Brigadier M Zameer Rajput Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology / NIF1D Rawalpindi Pakistan.
The symposium being held from Friday to Sunday will help highlight critical care health challenges in Pakistan and the developing world. That will also provide opportunities for specialists in critical care to present their work critique current ideas and develop collaborative ventures to help formulate critical care policies and protocols.
Acknowledging the AKU's research and education efforts in the area of medicine, Professor Farooqui said, "We need to collectively work towards solving the issues of critical care management through research and medical education. It is a big task and this symposium is a step towards this objective."
Drawing attention to this comparatively new field in Pakistan, AKU Associate Professor and Clinical Director - and the Symposium Organising Committee Chairman Dr Qamarul Hoda stressed that "well-equipped ICUs, critical care specialists and quality training centres are much needed in our country. This Symposium will highlight a relatively neglected but very important area of medical field."
At the same occasion, AKU's Department of Anaesthesia also launched the first edition of 'Anaesthesia Lecture Notes' which included a number of topics on the subject of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care. This lecture book aims to be a useful resource to the readers, particularly, the trainees in the specialty.
The symposium will be accompanied by hands-on workshops for physicians and nurses on different ICU related procedures including percutaneous tracheostomy; continuous renal replacement therapy; non-invasive ventilation; bronchoscopy in critically ill; and airway and arrhythmias. A two-day medical products and equipment exhibition is also being organised on the occasion.-PR