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How we are addressing the problems
The Logistics
Maqbool clinic, a General Practice clinic, has been owned and operated by myself since 1986. It is situated in Shamsabad, Dhoke Kala Khan, Rawalpindi very close to Islamabad. The surrounding area is densely populated (approximately, some 100,000) where a number of Afghan and Pashtoon refugees of Afghanistan live among local mix urban, suburban and rural population.
Mrs.Rahila Manzoor (my wife) is a locally trained health technician who can perform vaginal examination and take HVS and Pap smears. She is playing a vital role in this work. The clinic always has at least one nurse capable of dealing with women. It was decided that Mrs. Rahila would first examine the patients and if she found something requiring examination by a doctor, the patient would be given a choice to either have a pelvic examination by myself but if she refused, referral to hospital female doctor with a full personal reference from us. I had already trained and upgraded my skills in obstetrics and gynaecology via further training from friend Gynaecologists, and via the internet and audio-video aids. The necessary skills were then taught to Mrs. Rahila .It was decided that expenses for the women's health project would be met from income of our clinic's other routine activities and all income from this project would be utilized to add facilities for enhancement of our activities.
There was no pathology laboratory near my clinic. There was a great need for a laboratory that could provide quality results at low price for our "Women's Health Project", especially those essential during antenatal period. I was already doing blood sugar testing, urine sugar testing and pregnancy tests in my clinic from my own resources; but there was an immense need to initiate the following very important tests: Blood grouping, Haemoglobin Estimation, ESR, urine screening for sugar and albuminurea, urine routine examination, screenings for Hepatitis-B, Hepatitis-C and HIV/AIDS.
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I
had some savings from my clinic's income for this purpose. I used that
money to buy the essentials. We have a part time laboratory technician.
I had already refreshed my pathology knowledge and skills and undertook
training in these tests. I have been performing these tests since 2002.
I have kept the rates at a level which is affordable for all patients
and I do these free for the very poor. I am using Standard Control
Technique to prevent false results. Our patients have benefited not only
via the affordabe costs, but also get quality results without going very
far. To keep it self sustainable, all income from the laboratory is
being reinvested to buy the diagnostic reagents and material.
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