Category: Health

Lahore – In recent Court-proceedings relating to; Tea Whiteners’ safety and formulation, the court has declared that Tarang – Liquid Tea Whitener is a completely safe product for consumption. It enhances the flavor of tea, while reducing the cost per cup, as it provides economies-of-scale,by making twice as many cups of tea for the consumers.

Engro Foods’‘ Tarang’ Tea-Whitener is produced in compliance with the directives of ‘Pakistan Standard Quality Control Authority’ (PSQCA), while it also meets allstandards of the ‘Food-Safety Regulations’. Tarang is formulated strictly in accordance with the current CODEX ALIMENTARIUS International Standards, issued by the World Health Organization (WHO).  

Keeping up with its tradition of delivering the highest quality standards, Engro Foods Limited (EFL) remains committed and plays a leading role for the health and safety of its consumers and the public at large. The company recognizes that customers are increasingly concerned about the safety and quality of products they consume. Hence, EFL is extra cautious in ensuring that all its products are sourced and processed through the best production-practices – ‘from grass to glass’.

With Engro Foods’ long experience and expertise in the Dairy sector, the nutritional and health-safety benefits of our consumers remain the driving force behind the company’s vision.Tarang has been created to add joy to the consumers’ lives, by giving them a refreshing experience, by enhancing the taste of every cup of tea it makes, while giving a more economical alternative for milk.

EFL engaged the regulators and legislators to clarify the false rumors circulating against the safety of consuming Tea-whiteners. After getting all the important regulatory approvals, the company is now creating more awareness, so that the public can trust the safety and better affordability of Tarang. Engaging the media, the consumers are being informed about the better safety and  lifestyles choices available to them. EFL’s collaboration with the global leader in food and dairy industry – Royal Friesland Campina, has enriched the Engro brand with 140 years of knowledge, expertise and credibility to comply with all international standards of production.

Speaking in this regard, Mr. Naveed Saeed, Chief Corporate & Regulatory Affairs Director of Engro Foods stated, “Engro Foods has always been an advocate for safe and healthy products. We ensure that our consumers receive the best product in the market. As a socially responsible organization, we are proud of being a part of a community that stands up for their rights of safe products.  

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) GE Healthcare and one of its local partners, Ferozsons L.L.  will deliver a capacity-building program around maternal & infant care, including a series of application training classes and knowledge transfer sessions delivered by international and local trainers, at Shahbaz Sharif Mother & Children Complex, Sheikhupura.  The strategic cooperation agreement was signed by the Minister of Primary & Secondary Health, Khawaja Imran Nazeer, in the presence of David Mezher, General Manager GE Healthcare Middle East & Pakistan, Mohammad Kenanah, General Manager- Ultrasound, Middle East & Turkey, GE Healthcare, and Dr. Mazhar Qureshi, Country Manager, GE Healthcare Pakistan.

This strategic cooperation between GE and the Primary & Secondary Healthcare Department (P&SHD), Government of Punjab, will run throughout the year and aims to enhance and develop the skills of healthcare providers and midwives in the Punjab province. Ultimately, the program will help enhance the reach and quality of primary care services for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (MNCH), and will help address the challenge of maternal and neonatal mortality in the province.

Through this capacity-building program, GE Healthcare and local partner Ferozsons L.L, will cooperate with the Ministry of Health to train healthcare providers and midwives in nine districts of Punjab on utilizing ultrasound technology to help enable the provision of 24/7 high-quality antenatal care. These healthcare providers and midwives will then continue training primary healthcare providers throughout these districts year-round. With this remarkable training on adoption of innovative technologies designed to empower healthcare professionals, led by the government’s Vision 2025 to reduce infant mortality rate from 74 to less than 40 (per 1000 births) and reduce maternal mortality rate from 276 to less than 140 (per 1000 births), GE continues to play a pivotal role in strengthening Pakistan’s healthcare sector.

Speaking at the occasion, Khawaja Imran Nazeer, Minister of Primary & Secondary Healthcare, Government of Punjab said: “Although the situation for maternal and child mortality is alarming, the Government of Punjab under the leadership of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, is fully committed to addressing these challenges and this training center is a major step in that direction. We are not only training LHVs and CMWs in all districts of Punjab but also equipping the BHUs with the latest technology to ensure that no pregnant woman is refused the right to quality healthcare. “

Dr. Mazhar Qureshi, Country Manager, GE Healthcare Pakistan, commented: “GE is proud to support the development of Pakistan’s healthcare sector by providing innovative technology and solutions that address their biggest clinical and economic challenges. In-depth programs like these deliver the technical hands-on training healthcare providers needed to improve the patient experience, increase clinical confidence and heighten productivity.  Perhaps most importantly, these sessions enable knowledge transfer and ensure that more healthcare professionals across Pakistan have the training they need to deliver better healthcare outcomes for years to come.”

Pakistan lags behind most developing nations in its MNCH indicators. According to WHO & UNICEF, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) of Pakistan ranges from 111 to 283/100,000 live births, under five mortalities is 81 deaths/1000 live births and infant mortality rate (IMR) is 66 deaths/1000 live births; more than half of infant deaths occur in the neonatal period, respectively. While IMR has declined steadily over the last two decades, there has been no parallel decline in neonatal mortality rate.

GE partners with the public and private sector to deliver a new age of patient care in Pakistan. Today, a growing number of the large hospitals (facilities with 300+ beds) across the country are equipped with GE Healthcare technologies, helping healthcare providers combat cardiovascular diseases, cancer and other life-threatening illnesses.

Lahore –  Nestlé Pakistan, in collaboration with Swiss Embassy and Board of Investment, Wednesday hosted the launch of a book narrating the story of milk in the country, “Drops of the Divine: A Story of Milk in Pakistan.”

Developed by Markings Publishing, it is a beautifully photographed book that shines the spotlight on the history and journey of the packaged milk sector in the country. Pakistan is the fourth largest milk producing country in the world, with dairy and livestock’s contribution to the national GDP at a staggering 11%.

During the early 80s, the government introduced favorable policies to fuel growth of the dairy and packaged milk industry. Following this, in 1988, Nestlé partnered with MILKPAK Limited to revolutionise the dairy industry in liquid and powder milk as we know it today. Nestlé Pakistan currently stands as the leading food and beverage company with an extensive dairy product portfolio of liquid and powder milk that has continued to enhance the lives of Pakistanis for over 30 years.

Lahore  – Today, Facebook is launching a blood donations feature in Pakistan to make it easier for people to sign up to be blood donors, and to help connect donors with people and organizations in need. Pakistan, like many countries, has a shortage of safe blood. In some cases, this shortage means patients and their families are responsible for finding donors to replace the blood they receive from blood banks or hospitals. This can cause high-stress situations as people try to find blood donors on their own. Many people are reaching out to their networks on Facebook. There are thousands of posts each month in Pakistan seeking blood donors on Facebook, and over 100,000 people in blood donation groups.

This is where Facebook can help, by finding ways to more efficiently bring blood donors, people and organizations together. We have worked together with non-profit organizations, health industry experts, potential donors and people who have used Facebook to find blood donors to ensure that this feature was designed to be useful to people. We recently launched a similar tool in India and Bangladesh, where nearly 7 million people have signed up to be blood donors on Facebook.

Making It Easier to Become a Blood Donor
Starting today, people using Facebook in Pakistan will be able to sign up to be blood donors either on their profiles or by visiting facebook.com/donateblood. All information will remain private and set to Only Me by default, but people can choose to share their donor status more widely. This feature will be available on Android, iOS and desktop.

Connecting People and Organizations with Blood Donors
We’re also make it easier for people and organizations, such as blood banks and hospitals, to connect with blood donors on Facebook.

• When people are seeking donations, they will be able to create special posts to spread the word or go to facebook.com/findblooddonors. Facebook will automatically notify blood donors who may be nearby to help. Donors can then review the request and, if they wish to respond, contact the requester directly through a phone call. The requester won’t be able to see any information about the donor, unless the donor explicitly provides it when he or she replies.
• When organizations are hosting a blood camp event in Pakistan, they will be able to create an event on Facebook and nearby blood donors will be automatically notified. Donors can review the event and indicate if they’re going or interested.

HemaBudaraju, Head of Product, Health at Facebook: “We hope that by increasing awareness and providing tools for people and organizations in need to connect with those who are willing to help, we can make it easier for people to donate blood.”

Prof. Hasan Abbas Zaheer, National Coordinator, Safe Blood Transfusion Programme, Ministry of National Health Services, Government of Pakistan: “Safe Blood Transfusion Programme is proud to work with Facebook. We believe Facebook’s Blood Donation feature will help us address a key programmatic challenge for us, that is reaching a younger population of potential donors. We are confident that now this gap will soon become history.”

Dr Saeed Elahi, Chairman, Pakistan Red Crescent Society: “Safe blood saves lives and improves health. For 70 years, the Pakistan Red Crescent has worked to prevent and alleviate human suffering. We believe Facebook’s Blood Donation feature will make it easier for people in need to find donors and increase blood donations overall. Thousands of people seek blood donations every month in Pakistan and today the Facebook Blood Donation tool will help raise awareness of and the importance of reliable access to safe blood in Pakistan.”
People in Pakistan can go to facebook.com/donateblood to learn more and sign up to be a blood donor. For organizations interested in using the blood donations feature, contact us here.

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Lahore – Zong 4G, the country’s No.1 4G network and a socially responsible corporate entity is leaving no stone unturned to leave zero environmental foot print. The company recently made all its offices including CMPak Headquarters a smoking free zone. Beginning from January 2018, the smoking of cigarettes and other lighted products is no longer allowed in the office premises.

Smoking is injurious not only to health but also to environment. It releases toxic air pollutants in the atmosphere, the cigarette butts litter the environment and eventually the toxins seep into soil and waterways. Despite the mounting evidence of association between air pollution and ill health, little attention has been paid to it.

The decision to go smoke free was prompted from the Zong 4G’s commitment to environment sustainability. The smoking free workplace has been welcomed by the employees as sheer commitment for the societal and environmental well being. The substantive improvement in air quality is not only for the conducive and healthier work environment of Zong 4G employees, but a sustainable ecology as well, for the society overall.

The Company has dedicated the efforts for going green and opting for a sustainable energy supply for a significant portion of its headquarters as well as remote belts of Pakistan. Zong 4G has pledged not only to lead the digital innovation but contribute towards a greater social impact by improving the lives of employees, communities and also ecological system.

Lahore –  Today on World Diabetes Day, Martin Dow, together with key medical institutions, is working on spreading awareness about the impact of diabetes on a person’s life. According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), approximately 415 million adults have diabetes worldwide and this figure will rise to 642 million by 2040. Martin Dow is aware of the alarming increase of patients with diabetes and is committed to the cause.

Martin Dow’s awareness drive will start today on the official World Diabetes Day and will continue till the last week of November. Throughout the awareness drive, Martin Dow will have stalls and screening camps in a number of institutions including Aga Khan University Hospital and Liaquat National Hospital.

Chairman, Martin Dow, Mr. Jawed Akhai said: “The most distressing fact about diabetes is the increasing number of individuals who aren’t aware that they are suffering from it. We, at Martin Dow, through such activities want individuals to be mindful of their health and guide them in knowing what symptoms to look out for and what steps to take if they are diagnosed with diabetes.”

Diabetes, if not optimally managed, can affect an individual’s quality of life. It is a demanding disease that needs constant management. Such activities, as the ones being carried out by Martin Dow, can help educate individuals in making healthy lifestyle choices to prevent this condition, and for those who have diabetes, the educative activities can help them better understand their condition, reduce risks for complications, cope with lifestyle changes and help maintain an improved quality of life.

 

Lahore – Based on comprehensive tests carried out by two independent international food testing laboratories at the behest of the PFA, Haleeb’s UHT treated packaged milk was found fully meeting the specified quality standards, thereby negating all baseless rumours of recent months about its quality, said a statement issued by Haleeb Foods Limited here on Friday.

It is to be noted that Haleeb’s packaged milk was tested earlier in the year also on the orders of the Supreme Court and had cleared those tests too, based on which the Supreme Court had declared Haleeb milk fit for human consumption in its March 9, 2017 ruling.

At that time the honourable court had instructed the PFA to conduct another round of tests during the summer period to reconfirm the consistency of quality, and now the results of this second round of tests has reconfirmed the conformity of Haleeb milk to the laid down quality standards.

The PFA had collected the samples of all UHT milk companies from the market and sent these for analysis to two independent testing labs, Intertek and SGS laboratories. Both the labs belong to separate international chains of food testing laboratories and their results are accepted globally. The tests of both laboratories have confirmed that Haleeb milk is free from any harmful elements.

Haleeb Foods Limited CEO Memosh Khawaja said that the test results of the two laboratories engaged by the PFA have reconfirmed that Haleeb’s UHT packaged milk is of high quality and meets all applicable food safety standards. Khawaja also lauded PFA’s commitment to ensuring supply of safe and hygienic food and beverages for the public and stated that Haleeb Foods limited supports the PFA and other regulatory bodies in their work towards industry development.

Islamabad –  As part of its sustained Corporate Social Responsibility efforts, Zong 4G, the country’s No.1 4G network, marked Breast Cancer awareness month by holding an awareness drive at its Headquarters. Highlighting the importance of timely diagnosis and early detection, the company held a detailed awareness session for female employees in which participants were briefed on tell-tale symptoms and potential risk factors to help create awareness on this highly important issue.Pakistan currently has the highest incidence of Breast Cancer in Asia where more than 90,000 cases are reported every year. This is mostly attributed to a general lack of awareness where this treatable disease is usually detected at advanced stages where little can be done to turn its course.The awareness drive organized by the company was aimed at addressing this very issue through a series of different initiatives. All female employees which comprise of more than a third of the company head quarter’s workforce took part in an interactive lunch and learn session where they were able to gain greater insight into this illness from a panel of trained Oncologists. Participants were also given the opportunity to hear first-hand accounts from breast cancer survivors, celebrating the strength and resilience shown by these women in the face of adversity.With more than a third of the company’s workforce comprising of women, the activity is a stark reminder of Zong 4G’s commitment to the safety and well-being of its employees as well as the wider community. While the awareness session was exclusively for female participants, Zong 4G’s entire workforce donned pink ribbons for the day in expression of their solidarity with the fight against Breast Cancer. As a socially aware and forward looking company, Zong 4G remains committed to bringing about a transformative and meaningful impact in the country through its wide-ranging initiatives, straddling across a broad range of social issues.

KARACHI – Kazim Trust held its 3^rd Annual Conference on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Dyslexia at Aga Khan University Hospital, in Karachi. The conference was attended by parents, doctors, students of psychology and teachers of various schools.

The conference included sessions on a variety of topics related to ADHD and Dyslexia, two of the most common behavioural disorders in children. The conference not only created awareness regarding these disorders but also highlighted the reality of learning difficulties in children with such conditions and how parents, teachers and caregivers can empower and manage them. Different therapies and learning styles, in relation to ADHD and Dyslexia, were also discussed at the conference by the panel along with parental counselling.

Speaking on this occasion, Mr. Kazim Anwar, Founding Trustee, Kazim Trust, in his recorded video message stated: “We at Kazim Trust truly believe that ADHD and Dyslexia should never restrict the academic, social and psychological development of any child who may have a learning difficulty. These children have the potential to succeed in any endeavours with confidence if they are provided with a positive and a learning environment.”

While speaking at the event, Dr. Neelofer Vazir, Advisor to Kazim Trust stated, “Children with ADHD are generally marginalized at schools and stigmatized by home and community as not being normal. The fact is that they can range from normal to brilliant. Therefore, there is an urgent need for teachers and parents to identify the symptoms of ADHD as soon as possible so that this neurological disorder is addressed at its earliest. Kazim Trust can and does create identification through guidance, testing and analysis, and create awareness of emerging issues in children. Besides, that the Trust offers remedial therapy to these children and guidance and counselling for parents through teachers workshops, street plays, lectures and conferences.”

Speakers at the conference included Clinical Psychologists; Ms. Hafsa Rafiq and Ms. Farah Aftab and Remedial Therapists; Ms. Areeba Rehman and Ms. Anum Mehmood. Cindy Goldrich, International coach and Author of ‘8 keys to parenting ADHD’ also participated in the conference by shedding light on new and effective techniques for parents to manage children with ADHD.

 

Lahore – Dettol, one of the leading brands of Reckitt Benckiser (RB), celebrated the Global Handwashing Day with their campaign ‘Letter for Life’ this week. The main objective of this campaign is to raise awareness about the importance of handwashing with soap, and how a small act of handwashing can prevent diseases like diarrhea and decrease the infant mortality rate.

The activity took place in Metro – Cash and Carry in Lahore where children gathered to create paper soaps for children in rural areas who do not have access to these basic facilities. Apart from the activity carried out in the store, speeches were given out by representatives from both RB and Metro. Akbar Ali Shah, Sales Director RB Pakistan stated, “Cleanliness is essential for a child’s health and development, and on this year’s Global Handwashing Day, our aim was not only to educate children about cleanliness, but also provide them with appropriate facilities so that we can bring a change in their lives kyun ke thori si tabdeeli se Hoga Saaf Pakistan!”

Pervaiz Akhtar, Director Corporate Affairs, Metro Habib Cash & Carry Pakistan, stated, “It is an honor to be part of Dettol’s Global Handwashing Day campaign. Cleanliness is imperative to a child’s health, and we are glad we could help take their cause forward.”

Giovanni Sorenzo, Head of Commercial, Metro Habib Cash & Carry, stated, “I firmly believe in Dettol’s cause to spread awareness about the importance of cleanliness to children in rural areas as even in this time and age, children are dying because of diseases like diarrhea.”