Punjab Health Minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid inaugurated the Silk Road Clinical Research Center at University of Health Sciences here on Wednesday. Present on the occasion were Vice Chancellor Professor Dr. Javed Akram, Justice retd Tasadduq Hussain Jilani, faculty members and Chinese experts. The Health Minister presided over the inauguration ceremony. The ceremony was joined via video link by CEO of Chinese company Mr. Dean. In her speech the Health Minister said, "We are grateful to the Chinese bio pharmaceutical company. Continuous work on research is a positive development at the University of Health Sciences. The UHS played an important role in research on Corona. We are grateful to China for Corona control efforts especially in Punjab. We have vaccinated around 80 million people in Punjab. The Reach Every Door Campaign is in full swing. NCOC played a pivotal role in keeping people updated about the latest developments. A university is known by the quality of its research work. International research papers increase the ranking of a university. Statistics and their analysis form the backbone of efforts to control it. Corona Pandemic affected the entire planet and Pakistan's strategy of smart lockdowns was appreciated world over. The Pandemic left a lasting impact on economies like the US. Before the advent of vaccines, we faced it through preventive measures. Research is a basic responsibility of a university. Punjab is running the world's largest Thalassemia prevention program at Fatima Jinnah Medical University. Fatima Jinnah Medical University has published four research papers. In case of marriage of two carriers of Thalassemia, chances increase in children. Through Punjab Thalassemia Prevention and Genetic Disorders Institute Punjab has screened more than 300, 000 people. More than 13000 thalassemia patients are getting free treatment in Punjab. We have a complete registry of thalassemia patients. We are thankful to China for the vaccination of hundreds of thousands of people. Punjab Thalassemia Prevention and Genetic Disorders Institute is linked with Leeds University UK. We have now started door to door vaccination." Vice Chancellor UHS Professor Javed Akram expressed gratitude to the Health Minister and said the University has made a name in research. He said the UHS was thankful to the Chinese government for setting up a research center. Justice retd Tasaduq Hussain Jillani said the new research center will open new avenues in research. He paid rich tribute to efforts of Dr. Yasmin Rashid for Corona control efforts.
