Shaukat
Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (SKMCH&RC) is a
state-of-the-art cancer centre located in Lahore, Pakistan. SKMCH&RC,
Lahore was the very first project of the Shaukat khanum Memorial Trust, which
is a charitable organization established under the Societies Registration Act
XXI of 1860 of Pakistan. The Hospital has recently completed 25 years of
serving humanity and providing world-class treatment to all cancer patients,
75% of whom are underprivileged and who could not otherwise hope to access such
expensive cancer treatment.
Mission Statement
To
act as a model institution to alleviate the suffering of patients with cancer
through the application of modern methods of curative and palliative therapy
irrespective of their ability to pay, the education of health care
professionals and the public and perform research into the causes and treatment
of cancer.
Inspiration
for making the Hospital
Shaukat
Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre is the brainchild of
Pakitan's Cricket World Cup winning captain and now the Prime Minister of
Pakistan. Mr. Imran Khan. The inspiration to build the Hospital came after his
mother, Mrs. Shaukat Khanum, succumbed to cancer in 1985. During his mother's
illness, he also witnessed the plight of underprivileged cancer patients in the
hospital of Pakistan and deeply felt the need for a specialized cancer centre
in his country. Being a developing country, where the majority do not have
access to even elementary health care facilities, cancer was considered the
ultimate symbol of hopelessness and almost certain death. Prior to the
establishment of SKMCH&RC in Lahore, no specialisted institution for the
comprehensive treatment of cancer existed in Paklistan. Imran Khan decided to
embark upon the journey of realizing his dream of making cancer care accessible
to the people of his country, regardless of their ability to pay. Hence, began
the story of enduring love of a son for his mother and of the passion of a
nation.
Fundraising
After
the first one and a half year of fundraising in 1990, when Imran Khan seemed to
have exhausted all his resources, he turned to school children and launched a fundraising
team of "Imran's Tigers". The Tigers ended up creating history. They stopped
motorists at traffic lights and went from door to door to collect funds. They not
only collected funds that enabled the construction of the Hospital but also
created awareness among the public for the need of the nation's first cancer
hospital.
Pakistan's
win under Imran Khan's captaincy in the 1992 Cricket World Cup in Melbourne
helped the fundraising efforts. However, by 1994, the project was still an uphill
battle and at this point, donor fatigue had even exhausted the overseas Pakistanis.
The Hospital was planned to open in 1994 but by the October of the same year,
US $4 million were still needed to materialize this plan.
It
was at this point that Imran Khan and his team decided to test the support of
the ordinary Pakistanis. They set out on a successful Mass Contact Campaign
which started from the middle of November and lasted till December 28, 1994.
They toured twenty-nine cities and collected US $ 5 million in six weeks from
the ordinary people of Pakistan. In the mornings, Imran Khan would address
school assemblies and in the evenings, he would travel through the streets. The
generosity of the people of Pakistan was truly inspiring. By the December of
1994, Imran Khan himself had given almost half of what he owned to the
Hospital.
During
the entire first phase of construction, over a million individual donors, from ordinary
citizens to the rich and famous, donated everything from cash, jewellery. And
other valuables, to help the first SKMCH&RC transform from a dream to a
reality.
Master Plan
Dr.
Nausherwan K. Burki MB, PhD, FRCP, FCCP developed the master plan for the hospital
in 1990, while he was Professor of Medicine at the University of Kentucky. USA.
He oversaw the building of the Hospital, which was designed by Graham Rapp of
Arrasmith, Judd & Rapp, Architects in Health Planning, Louisville, Kentucky
USA. Design details on site were handled by Messrs. Nayyar Ali Daada and
Associates of Lahore. Local engineering was performed by Messrs. Progressive
Consultants, Lahore.
Pakistan's
first Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital an Research Center, located in Johar
Town in Lahore, is built on a 20 acre site. It was planned in three. phases
with the first one costing nearly US $ 22 million; nearly 67 percent of the required
budget came in the form of donations.
Dr.
Burki remains the Chief Medical Advisor and Member, Board of Governors, continuing
to be involved with program development, quality control, and recruitment of
consultant staff, as well as Professor of Medicine at the University of
Gonnecticut Health Center, in Farmington, Connecticut, USA.
Inauguration
Finally,
against all odds, after the completion of the first phase of the Hospital,
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre opened on December
29, 1994. Setting a new trend in Pakistan, the Hospital was not inaugurated by
a VIP but by a ten-year old patient.
SKMCH&RC Today
Withstanding
the test of time, Pakistan's first SKMCH&RC in Lahore is today staffed by
highly competent professionals and has gone from strength to strength, treating
thousands of patients over the years. Today, it stands as one of the best
cancer centres in the world and it is proud to have earned Joint Commission
International's Gold Seal of Approval for Hospital Accreditation. It is a
unique cancer centre which has been built and operated for almost twenty-five
years as a result of the support of the public, and which has consistently
treated over 75% of its patients completely free.
Projects
of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust
The
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust has established a number of centres all across Pakistan
that help in the awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer in Pakistan. Hospitals
a. Shaukat Khanum Memorial
Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (Lahore, Pakistan), the first specialized
cancer facility in the entire region with all the cancer diagnostic and
therapeutic facilities under one roof, inaugurated on December 29, 1994.
b. Shaukat Khanum Memorial
Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (Peshawar, Pakistan), built according to
the latest international healthcare standards, inaugurated on December 29,
2015.
c. Shaukat Khanum Memorial
Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (Karachi, Pakistan). The construction is
planned to start within 2020, with commencement of clinical services expected
within three years of the initiation of construction work.
Outreach
Cancer Screening Clinics
a.
Shaukat Khanum
Walk-In-Clinic (Karachi, Pakistan)
b.
Shaukat Khanum
Walk-In-Clinic (Peshawar, Pakistan)
c.
Shaukat Khanum Walk-In-Clinic (Lahore, Pakistan) work.
Diagnostic
Centres
a.
Shaukat Khanum
Diagnostic Centre, Jail Road (Lahore, Pakistan)
b.
Karachi Diagnostic Centre and Clinic (Karachi, Pakistan)
c.
Shaukat Khanum Diagnostic Centre, Liberty (Lahore,
Pakistan)
Laboratory
Collection Centres
Nearly
200 Shaukat Khanum Labortary Collection Centres (all across Pakistan)
On
Silver Jubilee of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (SKMCH&RC),
Pakistan Post is issuing a Commemorative Postage Stamp of Rs 20/- denomination
on August 06, 2020.
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