Establishment:
The Department of Clinical Oncology (Radiotherapy) was established in 2006 in the old building of Sheikh Zayed Hospital (previous DHQ) and from this year (2010) it has been shifted as a separate unit in PP Block. The department started its function with OPD facility, along with indoor admission and chemotherapy service.
Facilities:
- Outdoor patient care
- Indoor patient care
- Chemotherapy administration
- Round the clock emergency cover with collaboration of medical units
- Undergraduate & Postgraduate teaching
List of Training Program:
1. Undergraduates
- Two weeks of clinical attachment in cancer ward includes introduction of the specialty Five hours of instructions on definition and diagnosis of cancer
- Concept of staging & methods of treatment
- Importance of early detection and screening
- Medical Student, Technician and Students of Pharmacy, learn about the management of common malignancies.
- Medical Students also take part in Grand Rounds & Case Presentation during their attachment.
2. Postgraduates
Postgraduate resident and doctors from other medical and surgical are provided with know how for the management of cancer patients during their mandatory rotation in our unit. They are also instructed in Palliation Care, End Stage Care of incurable patients, Early Detection and Screening as well as the art of chemotherapy administration.
Achievements:
At present the department is providing tertiary care services to the cancer patients under the expertise of consultants, trained medical officers and nursing staff. We are serving a wide catchment area, which includes South Punjab, Upper Sind & part of Baluchistan. We are doing diagnostic & staging workup, all sorts of chemotherapy, palliative care and follow up. The department is keeping record of all patients and is a focal point for National Cancer Registry. There is turnover of about 20-30 patients in every outpatient day. All kinds of pathological, hematological and radiological investigations are available here except the nuclear medicine investigations. All kinds of chemotherapy are available and are administered to patients on daily basis under supervision of expert and trained staff. From 2006 this department was working with the collaboration of Medical Unit-I, but from this year (2010) the department has been shifted from the old build (Previous DHQ) to PP Block as a separate entity. It has a consultant office, doctor’s duty room, male ward & female ward, record keeping room and office for paramedics. The future plans are to establish a full fledge Radiotherapy Facility and Nuclear Medicine Center for this thickly populated area.
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