National Humanitarian Network (Punjab) Meeting will be held on 2 Nov at 2 p.m. at Centre for Health and Population Studies.

An abstract titled ” Impact of Government Reproductive Health (RH) Policies on Rural Communities in Sindh and Punjab, Pakistan, in the last 5 years; Field Findings “ submitted by Dr. Saman Yazdani Khan has been accepted for a poster presentation at the ISEqH 6th International Conference to be held September 26-28, 2011 at the University of Cartagena/Hotel Caribe, Cartagena, Colombia.

From the 1st batch of MPH students (session 2008-09) of CHPS, Islamabad campus, comprising of a class of 5 students (4 doctors and 1 non-medical), 3 students have cleared their examinations and have been awarded the Detailed Mark Certificate (DMC).  Their degrees will be issued soon. 

Of the previous batch of Lahore campus, 2 students (from a batch of 5) have received their MPH degree. 

As an academic, research and teaching institute (ART), CHPS has contributed to the 2010 Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health developed by the Partnership for Maternal, Neo-natal and Child Health (PMNCH), WHO, Geneva, Switzerland under the overall guidance of UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon.  The acknowledgement is copied below and the full document can be found at http://www.who.int/pmnch/activities/jointactionplan/en/index.html

Academic, research and teaching institutions

All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India; AII constituencies of The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health; Barcelona Centre for International Health Research, Spain; Centre for Development and the Environment, University of Oslo, Norway; Centre for Health and Population Studies, Pakistan; Earth Institute, Columbia University, USA; Harvard School of Public Health, USA; Initiative for Maternal Mortality Programme Assessment, School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Aberdeen, UK; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA; National Health Systems Resource Center, India; Umea Centre for Global Health Research, Sweden; Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Brazil; University of British Columbia, Canada; University of Lbandan, Nigeria

In March 2011, CHPS has been shortlisted by the Canada-Pakistan HIV/AIDS Surveillance Project (HASP), to submit a full proposal for up to 4 districts of Pakistan for Antenatal Sero-surveillance.  The organization met the criteria of organizations/consortia on the basis of the submitted Expressions of Interest (EOI).

Centre for Health and Population Studies, Pakistan has been accepted in DESA’s (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs) Civil Society database.  CHPS can now access CSO Net – the Civil Society Network, where it can take part and register to conferences and meeting related to economic and social development, share projects, add news stories, events, and more.

The Pakistan Engineering Council launched a new initiative for women with the objective of spreading the word about how to save energy in the home.  It is called Women in Energy (WIE).  WIE is seeking membership from interested individuals and organizations.  Forms are available at the website <www.womeninenergy.org.pk> and the email is info@womeninenergy.org.pk. Do visit the website & also circulate the information.

On December 1st 2010, in Islamabad, the Executive Director (ED) of the Health Services Academy (HSA), Dr Assad Hafeez, announced the formation and launch of the Pakistan Public Health Association (PPHA) during a conference on MNCH & FP.  It is a body that represents & promotes Public Health professionals and is an important step towards the development of sustainable public health infrastructure in Pakistan.  Led by Prof. Dr Abdul Majid Rajput, the Central Executive Committee (CEC) comprises of Dr Irfanullah Siddique, Dr Shahzad Ali Khan, Dr Ali Mir, Dr Saira Tariq, Dr Tahira Kamal, Dr Saman Yazdani Khan, Dr Zaman Afridi, Dr Mohammad Iqbal and Dr Zulfikar Gorar.  By providing a unified platform for the exchange of information & experience for all public health professionals, the PPHA aspires to provide leadership in both policy and practice.  The website (with membership form) is <ppha.km4h.com>