The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has approved a grant of Rs 21.5 million for a research project of the University of Health Sciences (UHS) on early-stage screening of patients with colorectal cancer.
The principal investigator of the research is the Immunology department’s head, Dr Shah Jahan. This is the sixth research funding won by the stalwart researcher. The title of the research project is “Fecal microbiota profiling and molecular biomarkers for colorectal cancer screening at an early stage: A way towards the non-invasive, cost-effective, and accurate CRC screening assay for local patients”.
The funding has been approved under the Local Challenge Fund initiative of the HEC with the support of the World Bank. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common gastrointestinal tumor, affecting 1.36 million people with about 65000 deaths per year worldwide and ranked as the fourth leading cause of death in Pakistan. From benign to malignant, it follows a long stepwise progression.
CRC remains asymptomatic in the early stage and spreads sporadically in most cases. Environmental factors play a leading role in the sporadic spread. The death rate can be reduced significantly if detected early. Diagnosis by colonoscopy method is invasive, labor-intensive, and not widely acceptable in the community. Available non-invasive methods are still expensive, less accurate, and may lead to a poor prognosis. To improve the CRC screening accuracy and acceptability, a cost-effective, non-invasive screening test is a research challenge addressed in this research project.
In this regard, Dr Shah Jahan has said the project will also help in building the research capacity of the department by adding new diagnostic, molecular, and computational facilities. UHS Vice-Chancellor Professor Javed Akram has commended the efforts of Dr Shah Jahan while wishing him success in the project.
The 177th meeting of the Advanced Studies and Research Board of the University of Health Sciences (UHS) was held here on Thursday with UHS Vice-Chancellor Prof. Javed Akram in the chair. The UHS body gave concept approval to start a six to nine months Certificate in Clinical Research course for the health professionals interested in clinical research particularly randomized trials with the aim to improve their capacity to understand various rules and the governing frameworks that will ultimately help them contribute towards scientific discovery and innovations.
This shall be the first course of its kind to be launched in the country. The certificate course will enroll medical faculty, laboratory scientists, technologists, clinical research associates, finance professionals, and health programmers. The course will hold 9 credit hours and it will be taught by foreign scientists, experts from the Drug Regulatory Authority Pakistan, and chief executives of pharmaceutical companies. The admissions will start in July-August this year.
The UHS board also considered the thesis reports of Dr. Roomana Hashim M.Phil. (Anatomy), Dr. Javeria Noor M.Phil. (Anatomy), Dr. Muhammad Anjum Iqbal M.Phil. (Chemical Pathology), Khaizran Siddique M.Phil. (Medical Laboratory Sciences-Microbiology), Dr. Huma M.Phil. (Pharmacology), Dr. Seher Naeem M.Phil. (Physiology), Dr. Uzma Awan MHPE, Dr. Saba Nosheenf MHPE, Dr. Khadija Khalid MHPE, Dr. Sharafat Hussain M.D. (Cardiology), Dr. Marium Iftikhar Ch. M.S (General Surgery), Dr. Zaeema Nasreen Akhtar M.S. (Obs. & Gynae.), Dr. Khadija Tul Kubra M.S. (Pediatric Surgery), Dr. Sulochana Dahal M.S. (Pediatric Surgery), Dr. Abdul Basit M.S. (Ophthalmology), Dr. Muhammad Uzair M.S. (Orthopedics) and Dr. Jiya ul Haque M.S. (Urology).
The synopses of 66 students were also considered for registration in various postgraduate courses.
Medical is one of the most respected professions in the world. In Pakistan, many people opt for medical as well. There are numerous medical institutes in Pakistan where thousands of students apply yearly. In this article, you will find the Top medical universities of Pakistan.
Aga Khan Medical University
Aga Khan Medical University, also known as AKU, is in Karachi and is one of the best medical universities. It is a renowned name of excellence in the medical field in Pakistan. AKU is also ranked as a leading medical university in Pakistan and ranked as the top 185th best university in ASIA medical university. The main campus is in Karachi, and it also has other campuses in the United Kingdom, Kenya, and Uganda.
King Edward Medical University
King Edward Medical University is in Lahore; every Pakistani is familiar with this name. This institute has a high standard of educational infrastructure, and many students get enrolled here every year. The Higher Education Commission has given the 6th rank to King Edward Medical University in the best institutes of medical education. It has many learning departments such as basic sciences, medicine, health sciences and much more.
Dow University of Health Sciences
This institute is in Karachi. Dow is one of the oldest and highly ranked public research institutes of Pakistan. Dow basically offers undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programs. In fact, it has recently announced admissions in Clinical Research Certified Professional course too. It ranks as the 3rd best medical university in Pakistan.
University of Health Sciences
University of Health Sciences, which is also known as UHS, is situated in Lahore. UHS aims to give brilliance in medical as well as health sciences on an international standard. The institute focuses on delivering an excellent high-quality education by its internationally qualified professionals. It ranks as the 2nd best medical colleges in Pakistan.
Isra University, Hyderabad
Isra University is a non-profit organization which is owned by the Isra Islamic Foundation. The university offers programs in allied medical, engineering, science, medicine and dentistry. Isra University has three campuses which are in Islamabad, Karachi and Hyderabad. Isra University ranked on the top 4th medical university in Pakistan.
Ziauddin University
Ziauddin University (ZU) is in Karachi, it is HEC’s recognized degree awarding school and is the top 5th medical university in Pakistan. Ziauddin is a private university which has numerous departments such as medicine, dentistry, bio-medical engineering, nursing, pharmacy and the list goes on.
PHEC To Assist Varsities Continue Education Online
The Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) has constituted a nine-member committee to enable higher education institutions to continue teaching lessons online.This comes in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic which forced the Government of Punjab to announce closure of all education institutions until May 31. The closures have been categorized as early summer holidays this year in lieu of the usual April/May – August/September window.Headed by PHEC Chairperson Dr Fazal Ahmad Khalid, the goal of the committee is to set out guidelines to ensure an efficient transition to online learning.The committee, comprising of vice chancellors of prominent public varsities, will work in tandem with higher education institutions to facilitate smart classrooms and to meet the IT needs of these institutions in order to manage as seamless a transition as possible.
Ministers Discuss Education Schedule, Exams In Face Of Corona Virus
An online video conference-based meeting between education ministers of all four provinces was held on March 26. The meeting took stock of school and examination schedule and how they have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mehmood presided over the online conference, while provincial education ministers of all the provinces, secretaries of school and higher education departments also attended the conference.The conference was aimed at discussing the education related issues of all provinces amid coronavirus. Extending vacations in educational institutions and examination schedule of different classes were also discussed. Punjab education ministries would finalize decision regarding both issues after committee meetings.All provinces have extended vacations in schools until May 31st and termed them as summer vacations. Through an order on March 24, the Punjab government’s cabinet meeting extended vacations in schools until May 31, announcing that the vacations would be part of summer vacations.The Punjab cabinet also decided that half fee would be charged from students during the closure period, but the teachers would receive full salaries.
HEC To Fund Research To Address COVID-19 Crisis: HEC Chairman
The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has sought proposals from universities, institutes, and individual researchers on ideas to address the novel coronavirus crisis. This was decided in a special video meeting of HEC’s senior management on March 24.The bulk of HEC staff has been directed to work from home, following the directives of the Health Ministry, so all the work of the commission is conducted electronically. Applications are received online or through courier, meetings are conducted by video link, and all papers and files are handles electronically. These arrangements have been out in place in order to ensure that all major services of the commission continue to be provided without interruption during the current emergency.The research initiative has been launched with support of the World Bank, and is entitled the RAPID Research and Innovation Fund (RRIF) program. It aims to mobilize the research capacities of universities in support of national efforts to address the COVID-19 crisis.Under the initiative, a rapid assessment and review mechanism has been established to analyze research and innovation proposals urgently. Each applicant seeking funding through the RAPID Research and Innovation Fund can propose an idea based on one of the priority themes. Funding will be provided to selected research-intensive institutions for analysis of data, testing of specimens, access to facilities or equipment, or development of essential products or services.
UHS Establishes National Tele-Medicine Center For Corona Virus Control
The University of Health Sciences (UHS) established a National Tele-medicine Center for Coronavirus (COVID-19) control to help healthcare providers manage and mitigate the spread of deadly virus.“It is so important for sick people to stay at home, and if they’re not that sick they can still use tele-medicine, talk to a doctor, and get some reassurance. And if they don’t have the virus, then it’s really good too — because it keeps them home and away from other sick people,” Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar said after inaugurating the tele-medicine center at UHS.He said coronavirus could be defeated only through precautionary/safety measures for which every single person of the society would have to play his/her role.Sarwar called for getting prepared to eliminate coronavirus with determination. The governor added that the coronavirus was jeopardizing economies of even developed countries and had become the biggest challenge for the world. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan was monitoring all anti-corona measures and was issuing necessary directives and ensuring release of funds to health and other relevant departments on a daily basis.
Unapproved Statutes Impede Appointments In 15 Public Universities
Around 15 of the 28 public sector universities in Punjab are unable to appoint key officials due to unapproved statutes and service rules, the Academia Magazine has learnt.Reliable sources at the Higher Education Department (HED) told Academia Magazine that as there were no approved statutes of public sector varsities, appointments of registrars, controllers of examination and treasurers could not be done as per the directions of the Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar.According to the sources, the service rules of Government College University Lahore, Fatimah Jinnah Women University Rawalpindi, Government College University for Women Faisalabad, Government College University for Women Sialkot, University of Sargodha, University of Education and newly established universities were still in the process of approval from the chancellor.They revealed that the unapproved service rules of these public sector universities were the result of cumbersome procedure for approval of draft statutes, inattention of the Higher Education Department and the vice chancellors of the universities.
