Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital inaugurated in Islamabad

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has inaugurated the renovated Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital in Islamabad, announcing that the government will cover 100 per cent of all patient treatment costs. The facility, which was originally gifted by the Chinese government and people as an isolation center during the COVID-19 pandemic, had remained non-operational for several years following the end of the pandemic.

The hospital has a capacity of 182 beds, including 50 intensive care unit (ICU) beds. It is intended to serve patients from Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. To ensure high standards of care, the facility will be managed through a public-private partnership with the Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN).

During the ceremony, the Prime Minister expressed regret over the facility’s long period of closure, citing it as an example of administrative neglect. He directed the health ministry to implement a third-party performance audit to monitor healthcare standards and ensure the hospital serves as a model for other public-sector medical institutions.