2010, Issue 1

AKU-NAMA Aga Khan University Newsletter and Magazine for Alumni Summer 2010, Vol. 3, Issue 1 Contents Editor-in-Chief Adeel A. Butt [email protected] Editorial Staff Shain Amershi, Executive Assistant [email protected] Associate Editors Faiz Bhora, Medical College North American Chapter [email protected] Rahila Zakir, Medical College European Chapter [email protected] Tazeen Jafar, Medical College Pakistan Chapter President Rasul with members of the University’s management team at the Alumni [email protected] Reunion 2009. AKU Umer Darr, Medical College IN THIS ISSUE ... Pakistan Chapter [email protected] Erum Kabani, School of Nursing [email protected] From the Editor's Desk 3 Fahmida Mehdi, School of Nursing “Precious Freedom” 4 [email protected] Nadim Farooqui, Institute for Educational Development Alumni Reunite! 6 [email protected] Nilufar Shariff, Advanced Nursing Studies A Small Contribution to Karachi 7 East Africa [email protected] Talaash 8 Balkis Rouached, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations Taking Nursing a Step Beyond 9 [email protected] Cricket … at AKU 10 Marie Andrades, Postgraduate Medical Education [email protected] To Know, to Do, to Be 11 Ex-Officio Members Firoz Rasul, President Critical Care Journey: Take-off in Tanzania 12 [email protected] Farhat Abbas, Dean Teaching Research Through Service 13 Medical College, Pakistan [email protected] When Opportunities Knock, Take Them 14 Rozina Karmaliani, Interim Dean School of Nursing, Pakistan On the Road to Burn-out? 14 [email protected] Benefiting from Information Management 15 Muhammad Memon, Director Institute for Educational Development, Pakistan [email protected] The Way We Carry AKU-SON With Us 15 Yasmin Amarsi, Foundation Dean School of Nursing and Midwifery, East Africa A Big Thank You! 15 [email protected] When Alumni Inspire Students 16 Anjum Halai, Interim Director Institute for Educational Development, East Africa Campus Happenings 17 [email protected] Mushtaq Ahmed, Associate Dean Awards and Honours 18 Medical Education, East Africa [email protected] Class Notes 19 Farouk Topan, Interim Director Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, UK [email protected] Cover photo: Aga Khan University Hospital,NRMP Karachi / Kohi Marri Match Results 21 The views and opinions expressed in this publication are of the individual authors alone and do not necessarily reflect the views or policy of the editorial 2 board or Aga Khan University. From the editor’s desk recognising success Adeel A. Butt On a recent flight from So, how do you measure Seychelles to Dubai, I picked up a impact? Aga Khan University copy of Gulf News. A major feature and its alumni have been working was on a free clinic run by doctors of on measuring the impact of the Pakistani origin in Dubai. Under the institution and its graduates. With auspices of the Pakistan Association various schools and programmes Dubai, the clinic caters to the poor of it has been a challenge to develop all nationalities who cannot afford a uniform metric that can gauge expensive treatment. In these days, this adequately. But some meas- when Pakistan mostly features in the ures are easy to collect and worst of news stories, this effort by assess. Peer recognition, media health care professionals is a welcome coverage of high stakes-high breath of fresh air. impact projects, nomination to The first faculty of Aga Khan major professional and social University was the Faculty of organisations, leading national Health Sciences. Graduates from and international initiatives, and the School of Nursing and Medical appointments at major institutions College have brought many hon- of higher learning are a few ways ours and laurels to the University. to measure the ability to imple- An alumnus is leading the National ment change. And it must be Healthcare Day in the United said, with great pride and joy, that States under the sponsorship of our alumni have done well in all APPNA (Association of Physicians those categories, and more. of Pakistani-Descent of North Other more recent programmes cess have been published in previous America), with many other alumni are not far behind. The Advanced issues of AKU-NAMA and we will lending a helping hand across the Nursing Studies programme in East continue to recognise these members country. A nursing alumna, fea- Africa, the Postgraduate Medical of the AKU alumni. The real hope tured in this issue, has worked both Education programmes in Pakistan for a brighter and prosperous future nationally and internationally to and East Africa, the Institute for for the developing world and the help communities in resource-poor Educational Development on both world at large lies with well-educat- settings, and there are many other continents and the Institute for the ed, tolerant, progressive and main- nursing and medical alumni hold- Study of Muslim Civilisations in the stream professionals. And Aga Khan ing leading positions in medical UK have produced alumni who have University should take due pride in and public health institutions excelled in all the categories men- being at the forefront of producing around the world. tioned above. Stories of their suc- such leaders. Alumni gather together at the Reunion. AKU 3 reunion “Precious Freedom” Professor Pervez Hoodbhoy, Chairman, Department of Physics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad gave the keynote address at the Alumni Reunion in Karachi. Professor Hoodbhoy holds a PhD in nuclear physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and has written and spoken on topics ranging from science in Islam to education in Pakistan. Excerpts from his speech are presented here. “Relations in human society are Many different manifestations of are very powerful ideas. Powerful ordered, are prioritised, according power exist. There is physical ideas are incredible in terms of the to power. Individuals and groups of power, the stronger side wins in a effect they produce upon society. individuals seek to enhance their conflict. There is the power of They rule the world, they drive our power. But what is power? Power is wealth, richer people manage to do a actions, they form our beliefs and the capacity to produce intended lot more generally and rise higher they unleash multi-revolutions. effects. The more power you have, than the pecking order of society. They have this enormous power the more effectively you can attain And then there is the power of tech- because they move our mind and a particular nical knowledge, the very fact that shape our understanding of the goal. world. Like the swine flu, they move from mind to In Pakistan, the true concept of mind, infecting an entire population, the University is misunderstood; until they become “it is believed to be just a part of common wis- complex of laboratories, campus dom and in that process might topple buildings, and libraries. But that established beliefs. is not true; universities are the It was Victor Hugo who said that a products of the dominant social stand can be made attitudes, the values which exist against the invasion in the society. of an army, but no stand can be made against the invasion of an idea. One clas- the doctors over here can cure a sic great idea was Galileo’s heliocen- patient. But the power of tric universe, the notion that the earth ideas exceeds that of orbits the sun. Although the Catholic physical force, Church was” not willing to accept this wealth and techni- idea, it was an idea, a concept whose cal knowledge, time had come and nothing could and this is a con- stop it from taking hold of people’s cept that is not so minds and this is what we accept easily understood today. Take Charles Darwin as or recognised. another example, nothing could pre- Not all vent natural evolution from becom- ideas are equal- ing the very foundation of modern ly powerful; biology. But these were ideas from there are the world of the physical domain; good ideas there are also ideas in the domain of and there human affairs. These can be inter- 4 reunion preted as either good or bad but most be capable of coherent expressions still needs to invest more money. importantly, they were transforma- in speech and writing; they will be So what’s the most important thing tional, such as Napoleon conceiving demanded everywhere. And there’s to do? France as one nation or Muhammad no university in the world yet that First of all, we want to free our Ali Jinnah creating Pakistan, an idea even comes close to this ideal one, students so that they can think. that led to people willing to leave the not Harvard, not Cambridge, not Education is about thinking; it is land of their birth and move across Oxford, none. But it’s something about liberating the mind. We can- borders and AKU aspires not allow biased individuals to willing to towards in its enforce their version of faith onto take enor- planned Faculty of the university community. And I mous punish- Not all ideas are equally Arts and Sciences. don’t mean the community here; ment and In Pakistan, the this is a different thing all together. sacrifice. powerful; there are good true concept of the We cannot forbid boys and girls In fact, “ University is mis- from attending co-educational insti- ideas and there are very we have an powerful ideas. Powerful understood; it is tutes; we cannot allow fanatics to institution in believed to be just ban music on campus, to destroy art human socie- ideas are incredible in a complex of labo- and culture. We cannot ban student ty that exists terms of the effect they ratories, campus unions because they are a way to precisely to nurture the produce upon society.

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