St Joseph's Hospice, Rawalpindi

St Joseph's Hospice (Rawalpindi) is a health care facility run by the Franciscan Sisters of Mary, open to patients from all walks of life.[1]

Founder

Francis O'Leary was a Catholic Priest and missionary in Rawalpindi. In 1962, while attending to a sick woman in a mud hut, O'Leary realized the need for a hospice. In 1964, he opened the first hospice in Rawalpindi. After receiving advice from Mother Teresa, he obtained loans and donations to establish hospices in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Guatemala and England.[2]

Facilities

The hospital has been run for the past 30 years by the Franciscan Sisters. With 60 beds, it receives up to 300 patients a day. The staff includes 50 Pakistani nurses, aides, volunteers, doctors, and ward helpers.[1] In 2009 Sister Mairead Walsh, a nun from Dublin, ran the hospice.[3]

The hospice treats patients with chronic illnesses and disabilities, tuberculosis, meningitis, polio and typhoid fever, etc. Children with congenital deformities and malnutrition are often abandoned to the hospice.[1]

90 per cent of its outpatients and 60 per cent of its in-patients are Muslim.[3]

St Joseph's has a well functioning laboratory, provides physiotherapy treatment and has its own pharmacy. All medical services are free of charge.[1]

The Pakistani government officially recognised this service to the community when in 2006, St Joseph's received the Award of Excellence from President Pervez Musharraf.[1]

The hospice is now a teaching facility attached to the Islamabad Medical and Dental College.[4]

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References
  1. AsiaNews, 10/17/2011
  2. Wikipedia contributors. Francis O'Leary. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 2011. Accessed 28 Oct. 2011
  3. The National, Jun 9, 2009
  4. Wikipedia contributors. "Islamabad Medical and Dental College." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 2011. Accessed 28 Oct. 2011
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