SWABI: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s largest neonatal care unit was inaugurated at Bacha Khan Teaching hospital here on Thursday.

Established with the assistance of Unicef Pakistan, the state-of-the-art facility has 46 beds and features a mother-based nursery, a kangaroo mother care (KMC) unit, a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), a critical bay unit, a high dependency unit (HDU), and an isolation unit.

Hospital officials outlined the NICU’s salient characteristics and thanked Unicef for helping to establish the facility, which cost about Rs 28 million to complete. He also praised Unicef’s efforts to improve the crèche facility at Bacha Khan Medical College (BKMC).

Ihtisham Ali, Advisor to KP CM on Health, and Dr Inamullah Khan, Head of Unicef’s Health Team, cut the ribbon and unveiled the plaque together to officially launch the unit.

After the inauguration, Ihtisham Ali visited the unit and praised Unicef for their invaluable assistance with neonatal care. He was joined by former National Assembly speaker and MNA Asad Qaiser and other dignitaries.

“This neonatal care unit is the first of its kind, providing comprehensive, high-quality care to newborns with all essential services under one roof,” Health advisor stated during the event. He said the establishment of other infant care centres similar to this one had been of great interest to the current KP government.Asad Qaiser praised Unicef for their crucial support and acknowledged the management’s efforts.

Published in Dawn, November 8th, 2024