For the past 15 years Falah, through its various initiatives and philanthropic enterprises, has worked towards alleviating the burden of health care by raising funds for needy patients and those who struggle to make ends meet on a day-to-day basis, in the hopes that they will receive the quality care that they deserve at the Aga Khan University Hospitals in Pakistan.
Friday evening saw AKU’s Sports and Rehabilitation Centre decked out in the colours of independence as the members of ‘Falah’ put u
p their admirably organized, annual carnival to generate funds to benefit disadvantaged patients while celebrating the nation’s Independence Day.
Falah-a registered non-profit organization operating solely within AKU- was initiated a decade and a half ago primarily by the MBBS students of the Medical College (MC), with the singular purpose of contributing towards patient welfare and making a positive difference in their lives. Earlier this year, students from AKU’s School of Nursing and Midwifery (SONAM) were invited to serve as members of Falah. The Carnival, marks the first time that the students of MC and SONAM have worked side-by-side for Falah, since the organization’s initiation.
The atmosphere at the event was alight with enthusiasm and passion as the students themselves manned food and game stalls, rides and even celebrated with an open mic set-up, rendering several ‘mili naghme’ (national songs) to celebrate the theme for the evening. The carnival also included a Falah Blood Drive inviting carnival-goers to donate a pint of their blood to possibly save a life, and was organized on-campus for the very first time. The Blood Drive collected more than seventy (70) pints of blood that evening.
A visitor at the carnival remarked that, “It was commendable to see the students from the medical and nursing schools work so enthusiastically to make the event successful for Falah’s cause as well as enjoyable for those who visited.” She further added, “highlights for me were the food stalls - in particular the bun kebab which was a ‘hot’ sale item given the number of visitors thronging that stall, the delightful qulfi and delicious apple pie; the tumbling box and pirate ship which seemed to draw a constant flow of excited youth; the entertaining spur-of-the-moment dance by the nursing school students and the national song sung by the students of the medical college’s class of 2016.”
The Carnival is one of two major fund-raising events organised by the ‘Finance’ branch of Falah each year. The proceeds of the 2016 carnival will go towards offsetting the costs of medication and tests prescribed to needy patients by consultants at AKUH, through Falah’s ‘Mohsin Abro’ patient welfare office. The blood donations will replenish the stores of the AKU Blood Bank, which is available mainly to patients in emergency situations.
Speaking on behalf of the organising committee, Falah President, Rayaan Asad shared, “I am very happy that the carnival was such a success and all of us at Falah are delighted that we were able to pull it off. We had an attendance of over 800 people including faculty, staff and students from both the medical college and the school of nursing. It was the first event jointly organized by medical students and nursing students and we look forward to having many more such events in the future. My sincere thanks to Mr Amin Lakhani, Mr Riaz Contractor and the staff of the AKU Sports and Rehabilitation Centre for helping to make this carnival a resounding success."
