A round table titled ‘Advancement of Clinical, Translational and Basic Research on Infectious Diseases to Improve Public Health in Pakistan’ was organised by Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering (SBASEE) in partnership with Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) on January 31, 2018.
The round table was attended by a number of thought leaders from the Punjab government, pharmaceutical industry, and local hospitals in addition to LUMS SBASSE faculty and Advisory Board members. Dr. Shabnum Sarfaraz (Chief Executive Officer Punjab Public Health Agency, Punjab Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department), Dr. Sabira Tehseen (Director, National Reference Laboratory for the diagnosis of Tuberculosis), Dr. Faisal Sultan (Chief Executive Officer, Shaukat Khanum Hospital), and the Chief Executive Officer and President, Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) presented a holistic view of the current situation of infectious diseases in Pakistan and highlighted gaps in knowledge regarding prevalence and treatment of infections diseases. During the round table, the participants stressed on the need to develop novel methods to combat drug resistance in Pakistan and to establish platforms for data recording and data sharing between different stakeholders.
The discussion identified several areas of potential collaboration between academia and industry, and academia and government sector to improve the situation of dealing with infectious diseases in Pakistan.
