SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being

Project Topi Blood Camp and Dental Camp 4th Oct 2022

Project Topi under the Student Affairs Department organized Blood Camp and Dental Camp on 4th October 2022 at GIK Institute. Students, faculties and staff participated in the blood donation drive and checkup of dental related issues with the Doctors. Every year blood donation drive is conducted in GIK Institute and in this regard Red Crescent Pakistan was invited to setup the blood camp. For the community of GIK Institute a team of doctors from 105 Military Dental Center Tarbella Cantt were also invited to setup the dental camp.

Blood Camp:

Red Crescent Pakistan visited GIK Institute to collect bloods for the patients of Thalassemia.

The Health Department of the Pakistan Red Crescent was established as early as the establishment of the PRC. Presently, the PRC Health Department runs 104 health centers. 69 Health Centers are supported by the PRC provincial branches. The remaining 35 Health Centers are supported by the NHQ through funding received from Movement Partners. The PRC is seen as a pioneer and a leader in transfusion medicine and research; it has provided generations of Pakistanis with blood products that are safe and reliable. It also has extensive Ambulance Services and First Aid Services.

Dental Camp

A team of doctors from 105 Military Dental Center Tarbella Cantt visited GIK Institute to setup a dental camp for the community of GIK Institute. 

Dissemination of information / awareness on hazards of use of e-cigarettes/cigarettes

Time to time emails are generated and circulated by our Students Affairs Department on awareness related to use of cigarettes and E-Cigarettes/Vap among students/faculty and staff at GIK Institute. In a recent notification circulated on Wednesday, 2^nd February 2022 the following information was shared with GIK Community to rise awareness:

The use of cigarettes and e-cigerattes are injurious to health. It is the quickest way to destroy the health and to burn cash. As per the research of World Health Organization (WHO): “Tobacco use is responsible for around 8 million deaths annually. The tobacco epidemic is one of the world’s largest, yet preventable, public health threats, resulting in more than 8 million deaths a year.”

E-cigarettes are harmful to health and not safe. “Children and adolescents who use e-cigarettes at least double their chance of smoking cigarettes later in life. E-cigarette use increases your risk of heart disease and lung disorders. Nicotine in e-cigarettes is a highly addictive drug that can damage children’s developing brains.”

For More Details click on the link below:

https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/more-than-100-reasons-to-quit-tobacco/?fbclid=IwAR3qwAibQV-Yv-SNhOwVkYfuu6UNnCb4VQ94bBfoaxGHQ9J6T3CPsdlqT_Q

“Your craving is TEMPORARY but the damage to your lungs is PERMANENT.”

Quit smoking, Be a Responsible Person. It is Never Too Late To Make A Change!!! 

Anti-Tobacco Awareness Seminar

Student Affairs Department assisted by the Project Topi and Character-Building Society organized an Awareness session on Anti-Tobacco on Friday, 27th of May 2022, at Incubation Center Seminar Hall, GIK Institute. A team form Shaukat Khanam Hospital delivered a session on the negative consequences of Tobacco.

With more than 8 million people falling prey to Tobacco induced mortality; Tobacco remains the single most preventable cause of ailment and dissolution. Smoking increases the risk of at least twenty different kinds on cancers. Nearly 40% of cancers in adult males seen at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre (SKMCH & RC) can be linked to the use of tobacco while 160,000 people die from tobacco related cases annually in Pakistan.   

Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of cancer and education of public related to prevention of cancer is an important part of the mission of SKMCH&RC. To make this mission successful, Shaukat Khanum Hospital conducts Anti-Tobacco Awareness sessions for students in colleges and universities along with the Shaukat Khanum Anti-Tobacco Awareness Walk across Pakistan to empower young students with life-saving knowledge to fight tobacco related cancers.   

Anti-Tobacco Awareness Session by the medical representative of SKMCH&RC and Anti-Tobacco Awareness Walk to raised awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco use and ways to quit for Faculty/Staff/Students of GIK Institute. This session also marked the “World No Tobacco Day“, formally observed annually on the 31st of May.

Preventative measures against spread of COVID-19

In Pakistan, educational institutions are convincing parents to get their children vaccinated against COVID-19 through motivational sessions and informative material. GIK Institute arranged time to time visits of COVID vaccination Teams at GIK institute Medical Center for free of cost vaccination available for students, staff, faculty, and family members of the employees.

COVID-19 SOPs were also shared by the Medical Center and Facilitation Department among GIK community to raise awareness and strict compliance. Everyone was advised to maintain a good hygiene and sanitation. It includes avoiding large gathering, washing of hands frequently, coughing or sneezing in sleeves, avoiding handshake, making limited physical contact by maintaining prescribed social distance & sanitization of hands.

Regular disinfection and fumigation of all the buildings and vehicles was carried out regularly. Emergency contact numbers and medical team was made available to the GIK Institute community. 

Post COVID precautionary measures

A Vaccination team from KPK health, District Swabi was made available in Medical Center of GIK Institute on 06-01-2022 “Thursday” to give Booster dose for Omicron variant COVID-19.

Blood Camp – Project Topi

Project Topi, welfare society of Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, has established a platform within the GIK community for conscientious individuals that believe in the power of unification and dependability. Project Topi executes numerous events and modules annually that promote humanitarianism and above all, bridge the gap between generations through generosity and compassion. Since 2000, a significant part of these have been conducted successfully and that too with impactful consequences.

With the collaborations of renowned institutions like Red Crescent Society, blood camps are set up within the central ground of GIK Institute every semester. A group of doctors and paramedic staff are appointed to ensure efficient administration of the whole day’s agenda. Students visit the camp in their free slots and donate blood. Over the years, due to overwhelming response, Project Topi has consistently been accredited with free certifications, recognition in newsletters and free CPR trainings by these organizations.

In response to the Blood Camp event that was held on 27th Oct, 2021 in collaboration with Red Crescent, it was witnessed an influx of donors. Project Topi managed to obtain 280+ bottles of blood, subsequently surpassing our previous record of 218 bottles and are truly gratified for such an overwhelming response!

Breast Cancer Awareness Program

National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE) organized an online session on “Breast Cancer Awareness” graced by Honorable First Lady of Pakistan, Begum Samina Arif Alvi. Student Counselling center at GIK institute Invited all female community at GIK Institute to join the online session via zoom meetings.

Female employees and family members of admin and faculty showed up for the cause. The session was open for everyone regardless of any gender.

Student Counselling at GIK Institute

The Office of Student Affairs promotes a sense of community and belongingness among students. The student counselor works regularly with students to help them in their personal issues. Further, they are motivated in their academic matters and encouraged how to nourish their life with plentiful intellectual activities. Also, relaxation methods are offered to deal with academic pressures if any. We assure the students the complete confidentiality of their concerns. 

• Individual Counseling: 186
• Group: 7
• Online Consultations GIK-Sehat Kahani: 38
• Psychological Orientation session for graduate students.
• Nine psychosocial orientation sessions were conducted for freshmen: (these sessions are merged with first cs 101 lab for a week)
• Five Mentoring Session for freshmen
• Session on Stress Management by International Mindfulness trainer Nary Chan Tauch, partnered with ‘World Peace Initiative” via zoom

A UNDP-sponsored Wellness Centre offering online counselling services for mental health and wellbeing of the students was inaugurated

GIK Institute has established Wellness Center in the new academic block on June 2021. Sehat Kahani has helped us to establish the wellness center while HEC and UNDP funded the project. Mental health counseling is provided to students and tele-mental health has been introduced.

The GIK Institute is the first private sector university that has established the centre. Amid frequent closure of educational institutions and start of online classes in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic the students faced difficulties, anxiety and even depression around the world. The governments and educational institutions started introducing the measures to carry out research regarding the impact, frequency and severity of psychological and mental health issues of the students.

Higher level of anxiety of the students caused by Covid certainly needed the measures for solving their mental health problems created due to academic disruption and education-related mental distress. Under the programme, a software application will be used for rendering online counselling as well as treatment services to the students.

News Link: https://technologytimes.pk/2021/06/19/hec-undp-and-sehat-kahani-inaugurated-three-wellness-centres/

Mental Health Day and Wellness Orientation

10 October is observed as World Mental Health Day, an international day for global mental health education, awareness and policy advocacy. The theme of this year was Mental health in an Unequal World.

Office of Student Wellness along with Character Building Society (CBS), IEEE and Sehat Kahani brought an opportunity to seek an equal support to learn about wellbeing and organized Well Being orientation on 12th of October 2021.

 Women Engineering Society on Breast Cancer Awareness

On Breast Cancer Awareness Day, Women Engineering Society at GIK Institute shared public service message via social media platforms that it is important to remember that breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer death in women. About 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer over the course of her lifetime. If you feel a lump, swelling, discharge or any unusual change, do not ignore it. Go see a doctor immediately as early detection and diagnosis saves lives.