The Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital in Islamabad has been revived to provide free medical treatment to patients from across the country, following years of closure after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif inaugurated the revamped facility in Chak Shahzad on Oct. 29, directing health authorities to ensure free, quality healthcare and make the hospital a model public-sector institution.
The hospital, originally established as the Isolation Hospital and Infectious Treatment Centre (IHITC) during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, had become non-operational after the pandemic subsided and remained closed for several years.
Its revival under the new name of Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital aims to restore a healthcare facility built with Chinese assistance and expand access to medical services, particularly for patients unable to afford expensive treatment.
Hospital to Provide 100% Free Treatment
The revamped hospital has 182 beds, including 50 intensive care unit (ICU) beds, and is expected to serve patients from Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of Pakistan.
Under the new arrangement, the federal government will finance patient care, while the Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN) will manage the facility and provide medical expertise.
Shehbaz Sharif said the government would bear 100% of treatment costs for patients receiving care at the hospital.
During his visit, the prime minister toured the renovated facility, received a briefing from Federal Minister for National Health Services Syed Mustafa Kamal and interacted with patients.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony, he regretted the hospital’s prolonged closure, describing it as a painful example of neglect toward poor and vulnerable sections of society.
The prime minister said he had taken immediate notice of the situation after learning about the hospital’s condition through a newspaper report and directed the health minister to take urgent measures to restore it.
He also apologized to the Chinese ambassador and the people of China for the years during which the facility remained closed despite being a gift from the Chinese government and people.
Shehbaz Sharif said the hospital reflected Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vision of international cooperation and shared responsibility for human welfare.
He directed the health minister and hospital management to make the facility a model institution. He also ordered a third-party performance audit to assess healthcare quality and ensure accountability, saying the hospital should establish a benchmark for other public-sector institutions.
Indus Hospital to Manage Operations
Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal said the hospital’s 182 beds would help address growing demand for healthcare services in Islamabad and surrounding regions.
He noted that the capital’s population had increased substantially since its establishment, while patients from Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Rawalpindi also traveled to Islamabad for medical treatment.
Kamal thanked the prime minister for his personal involvement in the hospital’s revival, saying his supervision and commitment had helped bring the project to completion in a short period.
He also announced that a 200-bed cancer hospital at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) had been prepared and was expected to become operational in 2027.
Dr. Abdul Bari Khan, chief executive officer of IHHN, thanked the government for entrusting the network with the hospital’s management, describing the partnership as an opportunity to expand free healthcare services in the federal capital.
He said IHHN operated 15 hospitals, 140 primary healthcare clinics, four blood centers and four physical rehabilitation centers across Pakistan, serving approximately 700,000 patients every month.
Dr. Bari said the network’s annual budget had increased from Rs1 billion in its first year to Rs68 billion in the current year. He attributed the growth to public support, donations, healthcare teams and patients, adding that around 70% of the network’s total budget was raised within Pakistan.
He also announced plans to establish a blood center in Islamabad.
Hospital Construction
China provided a $4 million grant toward the hospital’s construction during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, while the total construction cost was estimated at approximately Rs980 million, according to information reported by Dawn.
Originally named the Isolation Hospital and Infectious Treatment Center, the facility was constructed in just 40 days by the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the National Institute of Health (NIH).
It was inaugurated in July 2020 to provide isolation and treatment services for patients with COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.
Located near the National Institute of Health in Chak Shahzad, the hospital covers approximately 40 kanals and includes patient wards, laboratories, administrative offices and other medical infrastructure.
However, staffing shortages and operational challenges left the facility underused after the pandemic emergency subsided.
To restore its operations, the federal government adopted a public-private partnership model and selected IHHN to manage the hospital.
On July 31, the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination signed agreements with the network covering the management and operation of the hospital and Islamabad’s Regional Blood Center.
Chinese Ambassador Welcomes Hospital’s Revival
Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong welcomed the hospital’s inauguration, expressing happiness that the facility had been transformed from an isolation hospital into a general hospital under the personal attention of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
He appreciated the decision to name it Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital, saying it reflected the prime minister’s strong feelings for China and commitment to strengthening bilateral relations.
The ambassador also acknowledged Pakistan’s efforts in public welfare, including polio eradication, expansion of health card initiatives and youth development.
Referring to Pakistan’s economic indicators, Jiang noted improvements in foreign exchange reserves, exports, foreign direct investment and credit ratings. He expressed China’s desire to work with Pakistan to advance economic cooperation under the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
He expressed hope that the hospital would operate successfully and continue serving the people, further strengthening the longstanding friendship between the two countries.