The first meeting to sow the seed of I-MACCA was held on ——-. The following people gathered, visited the site and then planned for the future plans:
- Mian Majid Fakhri
- Sheikh Adnan Ibrahim
- Sheikh Inam ul Haq
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
- Sheikh Khurram Rehman
- Mr. Sajid Hamid
- Dr. Ghulam Mustafa
It was decided to provide the outpatient services to the community around. This step would facilitate the local community, give them the confidence in the services being provided by the Helping Hands Foundation and will provide awareness to the people & the donors about the project.
There was no building to start with. The construction of the new building demanded too much finance that was not available with the HHF. At that time, Sheikh Inam ul Haq & Sheikh Zeeshan ul Haq offered to utilize their building that was adjacent to the donated area. Since the building was not a purpose built for an outpatient so a lot of renovation work was required.
Following people took keen interest in the renovation work of pilot OPD of I-MACCA.
- Sheikh Inam ul Haq,
- Sheikh Khurram Rehman
- Sheikh Zeeshan ul Haq
- Sheikh Adnan Ibrahim
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
- Sheikh Mahmoud Saleem
- Mr. Sajid Hamid
They arranged & provided a lot of resources to make the beginning of pilot OPD possible. Mr. Sheikh Inam ul Haq took personal interest to meet the deadlines of the renovation. The whole building was given a new look with modifications of all areas to suit the need of pilot OPD, like reception, vaccination room, follow up rooms, waiting areas and a full fledge new seminar room. The all roofs were constructed a new. The whole building was painted afresh. The floor tiles changed.
They arranged & provided a lot of resources to make the beginning of pilot OPD possible. Mr. Sheikh Inam ul Haq took personal interest to meet the deadlines of the renovation. The whole building was given a new look with modifications of all areas to suit the need of pilot OPD, like reception, vaccination room, follow up rooms, waiting areas and a full fledge new seminar room. The all roofs were constructed a new. The whole building was painted afresh. The floor tiles changed.
The following people made the furniture & air conditioning of the building & seminar room possible.
- Sheikh Inam ul Haq
- Sheik Khurram Rehman
- Syed Hassan Raza
- Mr. Khalid Saeed
- Mr. Kaleem Zafar
- Mr. Muhammad Shahbaz
Eventually we were able to inaugurate the pilot OPD in June 2012. It was a humble start. Since then, we are stepping forward day by day.
The inauguration was made possible by the generous support of the following people:
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
- Sheikh Mahmood Saleem
- Sheikh Adnan Ibrahim
- Khawja Muhammad Azhar
The Pilot OPD was started in lieu of the Regular OPD complex that is planned in the first phase of construction of the I-MACCA.
The following services were provided at the pilot OPD in the beginning:
- Pediatric OPD services:
- Gynecology services:
- Obstetric services:
- Provision of free quality medicines.
The trained doctors & staff were hired to provide these services free of cost.
As there was a significant flow of obstetric patients in the outpatients, so a need for ultrasonography machine was felt. This service was provided by the courtesy of the following people:
- Sheikh Adnan Ibrahim
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
The patients were very much satisfied with the services that they were getting and we had started moving to our next milestone.
There were more children than women in the outpatient of I-MACCA, so the need was felt to provide the vaccination facility to the children of the area around. The Executive Divisional Officer health & District Health Officer were kind enough to agree to provide the EPI vaccines at the center. They joined in the Inauguration ceremony of the start of EPI services here.
The area is underserved for the facility of Asthma care. There are no long-term management plans with the patients. The I-MACCA has ventured to take this challenge. We have started to provide an asthma registry, with complete database, progress of the disease & treatment history. The patients are not only examined but also provided with guidance about the management of asthma & free medicines, though these medicines are very costly. The Pediatric Lung Association has provided the necessary logistics for this follow up care.
An important need for asthma care is the diagnostic & prognostic test called spirometry. It is strange that this simple test is not available in the whole of the south Punjab. Even the public sector hospitals do not have this facility. For the first time we have introduced this facility where children as young as 5 year can have their lung function assessed. The service is provided free of cost. The Pediatric Lung Association has provided the necessary logistics for this spirometry machine.
The cystic fibrosis is much more common than thought. This disease is not diagnosed, as the diagnostic test for this problem is not available in whole of the south Punjab (private or public). For the first time again, we have provided this facility, free of cost, to the whole pediatric population. The cost of the machine has been donated by the:
- Sultan Foundation (Chaudhry Khalid Usman/ Mian Majid Fakhri)
There was a need for the basic laboratory tests that were needed for pediatric & obstetric outpatients. We have established with state of the art equipment to provide this facility to the people of lesser lot. The equipment cost has been provided by the generosity of the:
- Sultan Foundation (Chaudhry Khalid Usman/ Mian Majid Fakhri)
The concurrent expenses of running the laboratory are being shared by:
- Sheikh Muhammad Ismail
- Sheikh Ahsan Rashid---Shama Ghee Mills
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
- Mian Shahid Iqbal Chaudhary
The respiratory infections are commonest in the pediatric population. The x-ray chest is the cornerstone in the appropriate diagnosis of chest infections. Keeping this need in view, we have arranged the state of the art digital x-ray machine. The X-rays are transmitted online to the consultants for opinion and results are communicated to the clinician online. The expense on hard film is saved this way. All the expenses of the equipment & installation has been borne by the courtesy of:
- Sultan Foundation (Chaudhry Khalid Usman/ Mian Majid Fakhri)
In the wake of resurgence of tuberculosis and dreadful resistant tuberculosis, there is a need to have a proper & complete treatment of the tuberculous children. We have started this follow up clinic so that a continuous & complete treatment of patients can be in ensured. We are also working on to have a complete registry of the patients of the area.
There was a need to have a continuous & uninterrupted supply of the electricity so that the paperless system can work smoothly. So 2 generators & UPS have been installed to achieve this objective. Following people were instrumental to materialize this need.
- Sultan Foundation (Chaudhry Khalid Usman/ Mian Majid Fakhri)
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed- for smaller generator.
We have decided in the beginning that the whole system at I-MACCA will be paperless. Eventually we have succeeded in securing software that is catering the needs of the whole pilot OPD.
The patient comes to the reception, where registration is done. The patient then moves to the nursing station for preliminary check up, where the registration data has reached through the computer. The Patient moves from here to the doctor & the prescription is sent to the pharmacy through computer. The patient gets the medicine from pharmacy.
If the doctor requests the x-ray or tests, they are also online & results are communicated back to the doctor online.
There was a need for the cool water. This facility has been provided by the:
- Sultan Foundation (Chaudhry Khalid Usman/ Mian Majid Fakhri)
The parking area was required for the vehicles of the staff & patients. This has been made possible by the courtesy of the:
- Khawaja Muhammad Azhar
Males are not expected in the mother & childcare center, yet there are times when some male member has to accompany the patients. A waiting area for males was required. This has been managed by the:
- Khawaja Muhammad Azhar
- Sheikh Faisal Saeed
The IRB- IMACCA was formed in November 2012. This is one of the great leaps of I-MACCA whereby it is empowered to give ethical approval of the studies that are to be conducted & reported from this institute. The SOPs for IRB were given approval. Following are the members.
- Sheikh Adnan Ibraheem (I-MACCA board representative)
- Muhammad Afzal Sipra (Community representative)
- Sheikh Ijaz Ahmad (Advocate & social worker)
- Dr. Naila Noreen - (Consultant Obs & Gynae (I-MACCA)
- Dr. Hafiz Muhammad Aslam Mir (Religious leader/ Doctor)
- Dr. Muhammad Shafiq (Community representative)
- Dr. Ghulam Mustafa (Chairman I-MACCA & Associate professor of pediatrics Nishtar medical college, Multan.)
This is another feather in the honor of I-MACCA. The cell has been constituted and its Standard Operating Protocols have been laid down. This would be very instrumental for the cultivation of research culture within the organization.