A review meeting regarding the ongoing Hepatitis C elimination pilot project in Islamabad was held under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Health, Syed Mustafa Kamal.
The meeting was attended by the Federal Secretary for Health, heads of major hospitals, and the District Health Officer (DHO) Islamabad.
During the meeting, a detailed review was conducted of the challenges being faced in Hepatitis C screening and elimination efforts in Islamabad. The participants were briefed on the current progress, operational bottlenecks, and strategies to enhance outreach and service delivery.
The Minister emphasized that Pakistan bears a very high burden of Hepatitis C patients and reaffirmed the government’s strong commitment to eliminating the disease from the country.
He directed that effective measures for Hepatitis C elimination must be accelerated, and maximum screening coverage of the population must be ensured.
Highlighting the importance of awareness, the Minister instructed authorities to intensify public awareness campaigns so that more people come forward for testing.
He stated that the elimination of Hepatitis C is a national cause and requires coordinated and sustained efforts at all levels.
The Federal Minister urged hospital heads to further accelerate their efforts to ensure the success of the programme and stressed the importance of timely treatment for patients who test positive.
He added that prevention is better than cure, emphasizing the need to protect people from becoming patients in the first place.
The Minister also appealed to the public to visit designated health facilities in Islamabad and avail free testing services.
He noted that the success of this programme is not possible without active public cooperation and participation.
