[Published on Dawn.com Newspaper on April 15, 2012]

PESHAWAR, April 15: Experts have expressed concern over shortage of nurses and have called for setting up more colleges to produce desired number of nurses to improve patients’ care in hospitals.

“There is one nurse for 31,579 patients in Pakistan against WHO’s recommendation of one nurse for 10 patients,” said Prof Najib ul Haq, principal of Peshawar Medical College (PMC). Pakistan has one doctor for a population of 1,516, according to the Federal Bureau of Statistics, he said.

Speaking at a ceremony marking the inauguration of Rufaidah Nursing College (RNC) at the Kuwait Teaching Hospital (KTH) on Sunday, he said nursing profession had come of age now as nurses were given training in different branches of medical sciences.

Highly trained nurses, he said were required to improve healthcare delivery especially in rural areas where female patients felt hesitation to be seen by male doctors due to social taboos.

Dr Najib, also chief executive of the Prime Foundation, said that Rufaidah Nursing College would produce much-needed human resource in area of nursing who would then be serving people. He also urged that students should be given lectures on medical ethics so they could become good professionals and keep confidentiality of the patients while serving them.

Today while launching RNC, we are simultaneously holding closing ceremony of the series of refresher courses that were held over the period of one year as capacity building initiative by Prime Foundation in collaboration with the International Development and Relief Foundation (IDRF), Canada to upgrade the birth assistance skills of midwives from flood affected districts of Charsadda and Nowshera, he said.

This month, as communities across Canada participate in cancer awareness activities, everyone is reminded that a key element in the struggle against cancer, and a number of other diseases, is prevention.

IDRF is supporting a project that will improve the psychological and social wellbeing of women treated for cancer and their families and create a supportive social network around them. It will also emphasize the importance of early detection through regular breast cancer screening and lab tests.

When 60,000 people were left homeless in Turkey after the October 2011 earthquake, the situation was more critical and challenging then it was first imagined. Winter had already begun to creep in, adding frostbite and exposure related injuries to the torment of the homeless people of Eastern Turkey.

As an immediate response, IDRF (International Development and Relief Foundation) partnered with the International Blue Crescent (IBC) to address the heating needs in nine villages. 250 portable wood-fired and vented heating units were soon installed that provided heat to almost 1500 immediate family members in the towns of Van and Ercis.

Already dealing with hard economic conditions even before the earthquake, it was realized that the region's recovery would not be swift and easy and it was essential to immediately ease one main aspect of their living condition as part of emergency response. Providing heaters to these low income communities where adverse weather conditions are beyond endurance was part of that emergency response and the beneficiaries were most grateful for this provision.

Since families have been sharing the shelters to spread their meager provisions and share heating resources, over five thousand people have actually benefited from the warmth these heaters provide. The heaters will last on average an additional ten years with proper upkeep and maintenance, providing a gift that will continue to give for many winters to come. This project is sustainable since beneficiaries who have a high need of these are motivated to maintain them and these will last them at a minimum for five years through a guarantee. It is the most cost effective and common heating system in the region without any additional cost for heating raw materials.

The main operation center for distribution has been established in the biggest village of Ermişler which was the regional center with the school and state facilities and involvement of local villagers to all activities secured.

Severe weather conditions initially delayed the delivery of the heaters to the far-off villages as roads were covered with snow. At such times villagers came to the center and helped access by opening the roads or assisting project vehicles trapped on the roads. In some cases the villagers provided their volunteer capacity by delivering the heaters to the villages on their animals. [Click here to see more photos.]

IDRF is proud of this partnership with IBC and their dedication in reaching and providing aid to survivors despite the difficulties. Without the support of generous donors, it is impossible to succeed in such ventures, and IDRF acknowledges all supporters who helped in spreading the warmth!

ATM GRADUATE ENGINEER NOW WORKING IN ONTARIO

Gujarat, India – Orphaned and homeless children are amongst the 50% of India’s rural population with slim chances of survival, let alone progress. But one Canadian, who now lives a successful life in Brampton, Ontario, paved his way towards progress from just such a village in Gujarat, overcoming the challenges with the help of education and support from a local charity in India.

Anjuman-E-Talimul Muslimeen (ATM), offers underprivileged students from 160 villages of Gujarat free access to primary and secondary education at its own school and hostel. It also provides scholarships for higher learning at universities and colleges for the study of medicine, paramedic, pharmacy, engineering, trades and other disciplines, without any bias and based purely on merit.

In 2011, more than 325 students received scholarships for higher education, while 425 attended school for primary and secondary education and now the children from the impoverished districts of Surat & Valsad will also be getting the same opportunity to improve their lives through education.

BANGLADESH HEALTH PROJECT TO HELP 50,000 PEOPLE

Chittagong, Bangladesh – A Canadian initiative is saving the lives of many mothers and their unborn children.

The Chittagong Maternal Health Project in Bangladesh, which is being funded by Canada’s IDRF, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), and the local Village Education Resource Centre (VERC), will provide a number of resources to improve maternal health in two communities – Sitakunda and Mirsarai of the Chittagong sub-district in Bangladesh. Aimed specifically to address mother and child health issues in these counties (upzilas), the project is expected to substantially reduce the rate of maternal and infant mortality as well as the number of children born underweight in a country that has long suffered from some of the worst maternal health scores in the world.

The resources supplied through the project will include a pair of 24-hour clinics, ambulance service, information on maternal nutrition, provisions for organic gardening, improved cooking stoves, 221 sanitary latrines, 30 deep tube wells for potable water, safe birthing kits and enhanced training for birthing attendants. It is estimated that more than 50,000 people will benefit from this initiative.

AWARD-WINNING CONCEPT WILL ALSO CREATE 1,600 JOBS

Nairobi, Kenya – An innovative African project inspired by an award-winning waste management model and funded by a Canadian charity will soon be bringing clean water, garbage collection, sanitation facilities and much-needed employment to underserved communities in Nairobi.

The Waruku & Wangige Water and Environmental Sanitation Project (WASAP) managed by partners TakaTaka Solutions and the Resource Maximization Program (REMA), is a unique and holistic approach to the challenge of rapid population growth in and around the city of Nairobi. The city’s population has ballooned from 830,000 people in 1979 to more than 3 ½ million people today, without a corresponding increase in basic infrastructure such as proper access to water, garbage collection and sanitation facilities. As a result, many of the city’s most vulnerable citizens are living in unsanitary conditions.

WASAP, with funding from IDRF will address this situation by building a centralized waste collection and sorting centre, as well as three decentralized collection points. They will also construct a sanitation block that will provide clean water and bathroom facilities for up to 1,000 people per day at the busy Wangige Market.

During a site visit to the project in Nairobi last week, Winston Kassim, C.M., the volunteer Chair of the IDRF and the Head of Strategic Performance Management with RBC Royal Bank in Toronto, praised the innovative plan of the in-country partners, TakaTaka Solutions, the brainchild behind the WASAP project.

“TakaTaka Solutions and REMA are taking a unique approach to the challenge of providing underprivileged people with basic infrastructure services such as water and sanitation,” said Winston. “And in so doing, they are creating jobs and a sustainable business model that can be expanded to other communities.”

With over 11 million people in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti in need of life saving assistance, IDRF responded immediately by providing food and water and also launched a fundraising appeal.

Thanks to your very generous response, IDRF was able to expand our humanitarian efforts and due to the extent of the disaster are supporting a number of initiatives in various parts of the Horn of Africa. We are implementing projects with several partners in different regions in the area. We are working in Kenya as well as in Somalia, which was most affected by the famine and which many outside agencies found difficult to access. For IDRF access was not a problem as we have local partners.

As usually happens in such situations, women and children are disproportionately affected by the crisis, and therefore our programming has explicitly targeted these demographics. For example, where necessary, the food programs are augmented by other items such as mosquito nets, sanitary towels, and floor mats.

Whenever possible, our rehabilitation projects are also helping support any existing education initiatives. For example, in one project the fees of schoolgirls are subsidized so their parents will not resort to keeping girls out of school in order to free up money from their school fees for the family to make necessity purchases. Bearing in mind the importance of sanitation, some projects include digging of pit latrines for men and women.

The prolonged drought was followed by heavy rains in certain regions which choked out vegetation and new cropping, exacerbating pre-existing crisis conditions. In response to this new challenge, IDRF is working closely with partners on the ground to develop rehabilitation initiatives that will help vulnerable populations mitigate the effects of this drastic shift in precipitation.

Conflicts and insecurity are major concerns so IDRF is closely monitoring the situation as security, of both our partners and our beneficiaries, is of primary importance.

IDRF has supported several thousand famine affected families through our comprehensive and diversified food support since September, and with your continued interest and support will carry on work in the region in close communication with local partners, addressing needs and challenges as they arise, and developing programming with the direct input of the people we intend to assist.

Click read more for a current list of Projects & Partners in the Horn of Africa.

Monsoon rains have once again devastated large swathes in Pakistan, specifically the southern province of Sindh where 80 people have already died and 4 million have been displaced. As several UN agencies prepare to visit the region over the next few days to survey the damage and conduct a needs assessment the government of Pakistan has asked UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon to launch an international appeal to assist the people in the flooded areas.

IDRF’s response once again has been immediate and we are already in touch with our local partners in Pakistan and are preparing emergency relief measures that will focus on the distribution of essential items such as clean water, hygiene kits and medicine.

For the devastating floods of August 2010 which ravaged more than half of Pakistan, IDRF received a tremendous outpouring of support from its donors. The survivors there have not fully recovered yet with their crops and livelihood destroyed. With this new calamity yet again upon them, we once again urge everyone to assist the people who are on the brink of another humanitarian crisis.

Call IDRF at 416-497-0818 or Toll Free: 1-866-497-IDRF or CLICK HERE to make a secure online donation marked
“IDRF 2011 PAKISTAN FLOOD RELIEF”. Donations to IDRF are eligible for tax receipts.

For more information about a 2011 Pakistan Flood Project,
click on the organization name below.