RAWALPINDI, Feb 3: The Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC) will start emergency services and surgeries from Monday.

Cardiac surgeon Hasnat Khan, who rose to world prominence for his reported link to Princess Diana in the mid-1990s, will head the RIC surgery department. However, he will shift to Pakistan from the United Kingdom in March to join the institute.

“Dr Khan is all set to join the RIC along with his team in March. After his arrival, we will start heart transplant services,” said Major General (retired) Dr Azhar Kiani, the chief executive officer of RIC, while talking to Dawn on Saturday.

He said RIC would start conducting surgeries from Monday. An angiography on two patients was successfully conducted at the institute on Saturday, he added.

“Zahid Mehmood and Imran Ayub were the first two patients whose angiography was done in the newly-established RIC,” he said.

Dr Kiani said all patients would be provided services free of cost or at nominal rates. Free surgery services will be provided to the poor from northern parts of the country, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir, after verifying their data from the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).”

The provincial government has formed categories for the patients. Those coming under category one will get the services free of cost while patients in the category two would have to pay 25 per cent charges.

The RIC has 48 emergency beds, 26 ventilators, two operation theatres, two intensive care units with 12 beds each and two wards with eight beds each.

Dr Kiani said more than 44 security guards have been recruited for the institute. For the sanitary services, a private firm has also been hired.

The RIC chief said the Punjab government had allocated Rs1.8 billion to the hospital this year and more funds would be given in case of a need.

“Under a revenue generation programme, the provincial government has allowed specialist doctors to conduct private practice in the hospital in the evening. The doctors will get 55 per cent of the fee while the remaining 45 per cent will go to the hospital fund,” he said.