Korea to Fund $4 Million Prosthetics Project at Mayo Hospital, Lahore

LAHORE: The Republic of Korea will provide a $4 million grant to modernise prosthetics and orthotics services at Mayo Hospital, Lahore, under a rehabilitation engineering project expected to supply advanced artificial limbs to around 800 amputees.

The project was discussed on Friday at King Edward Medical University (KEMU), where Punjab Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique met a Korean delegation led by Dr Sehoon Park, managing director of K-RERI. The minister welcomed the project and said the Punjab government would cooperate fully, in line with directions from Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif. He described the memorandum of understanding as an important step for international cooperation in disability services and rehabilitation engineering.

Under the plan, the hospital’s Prosthetics and Orthotics Workshop will be upgraded and fitted with modern machinery. Master trainers will go to Korea for specialised training, and Korean experts will visit Mayo Hospital to provide technical support. The stated aim is to improve access to quality prosthetic devices while building local capacity that lasts beyond the grant.

The Korean side gave a presentation on the workshop’s history, the problems it currently faces in prosthetic rehabilitation and the need for better facilities. It also set out the project’s objectives, duration and expected outcomes, though those details were not made public.

A tripartite MoU signed at KEMU brings in three Punjab institutions, each with a separate role:

• KEMU will lead implementation and set up a specialised rehabilitation facility for customising, fitting and installing robotic prosthetics, along with clinical support.
• The Social Welfare Department, including the Maryam Ko Batayn initiative, will identify deserving people with physical disabilities, verify applications against approved eligibility criteria and refer them for treatment.
• The Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) will handle the digital side, including the project database, applicant registration and monitoring tools.

According to CW Pakistan, PITB will set up a dedicated Project Management Unit at Arfa Software Technology Park to coordinate implementation and connect the systems of the participating institutions. It has not been announced whether registration will happen through an online portal or a mobile app, or what data protection rules will apply to applicants’ information.

The specific robotic prosthetic technologies and manufacturers involved have also not been disclosed, and no implementation timeline has been made public.

KEMU Vice-Chancellor Professor Mahmood Ayaz, Mayo Hospital CEO Professor Shahzad Anwar, Professor Ali Madih Hashmi, Medical Superintendent Dr Abdul Mudabbir Rehan, PITB officials and faculty members attended the meeting. The Korean delegation also included Director Jinjien Song, First Secretary Moon Sung and Second Secretary and Consultant Yensio Cho.

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Korea to Fund $4 Million Prosthetics Project at Mayo Hospital, Lahore

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Korea to Fund $4 Million Prosthetics Project at Mayo Hospital, Lahore

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