PESHAWAR: Health experts have called for creating awareness regarding the causes, prevention and timely investigations to diagnose diabetes and ensure prompt management to safeguard affected people from complications.

`We have planned to set up 600-bed hospital only for diabetic people to provide treatment to them as well as carry out research on prevalence of the disease along with scaling public awareness,` Prof Roohul Mugeem, the medical director of Aims Diabetes Hospital and Research Centre, Hayatabad, told a ceremony here on Monday.

The hospital will be modelled after Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders (BIRDEM) set up by noted physician MohammadIbrahim that has been benefitting patients since 1980.

Prof Mugeem, a former dean of Khyber Medical College, said that it would be the first-ever specialised hospital for patients of diabetes where they would get all services under one roof.

The event was organised by Diabetes Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to mark World Diabetes Day.

Prof Mugeem said that currently they were providing all services to patients by charging Rs100 from them. He said that patients were checked by ophthalmologists, dentists, endocrinologists, surgeons and physicians to ensure their comprehensive treatment but the patients` load warranted a full-scale hospitalin the province.

`We have planned to charge the rich and spend the same money on the treatment of poor, who cannot afford expenses of their treatment,` he said.

Dr Ziaul Hassan, the president of Diabetes Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said they ran 12 centres to diagnose patients at primary level as early investigation saved people from host of complications including amputation of legs. `Diabetes is mother of all illnesses and it requires many special-ists for management. One patient impacts the entire family, therefore, we want awareness and full scale services, he said.

Dr Ashfaq Ali of Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC) said that accessibility and affordability were main challenges faced by patients.

He said that patients were wandering to get insulin while female patients encountered stigma because people were afraid of marrying them due to the expenditure of treatment and also held wrong notions that they would not be able to give birth to children.

Dr Khalid Usman, an endocrinologist at HMC and vice president of Diabetes Association, painted a grim picture of the prevalence of the disease. He said that the prevalence of diabetes was 10.5 per cent that would surge to 46 per cent by 2045 if preventive measures were not taken.

He stressed the need for screening, awareness campaigns and risk assessment to be followed by effective interventions. He said that lack of authentic data about patients of diabetes in the country hampered formulation of effective policies.

He said that globally its prevalencewas more among the people of 60 to 70 years but Pakistan topped the list of countries where diabetes affected young people.

Mayor Zubair Ali announced to start a pilot project to create awareness among people about the disease. `We will give cash assistance and dowry to women of diabetes-affected families and sponsor health camps to sped dup diagnostic and curative services,` he said.

Senator Prof Meher Taj Roghani, a former head of child health department at Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH), urged people to get medical checkups regularly and suggested that diabetic patients should take care of their foot.

Prof Qutb-i-Alam, a former surgeon at KTH, and Dr Mohammad Salman Aamir also spoke on the occasion. They said that people should be health-conscious to avoid many complications.

Many people afflicted with diabetes didn`t take proper care and often ended up in amputation of legs.

Later, Sana Ajmal of NGO Methi Zindagi launched a programme to enable the patients to access the relevant information and avail quality services.