Aga Khan University Alumni Association of North America

Connecting AKU Alumni in North America


Join Now
You are here: Home / Blog

Joint statement by AKUAANA and APPNA regarding recent violence against healthcare professionals in Pakistan

By

APPNA and AKUAANA strongly condemn the recent violence perpetrated against Dr Shahnila and Dr. Azam Ali at Liaquat National Hospital.

Dr. Azam Ali is a well-respected Ophthalmologist in Karachi. A graduate of AKU, he has trained and taught scores of medical students, residents and fellows. This heinous and abominable act against such highly respected physicians cannot simply be ignored. We demand an immediate investigation into the incident and that those involved be immediately held accountable. We also request the Provincial and Federal Governments to ensure a safe working environment for healthcare professionals across Sindh and Pakistan.

Given a long history of targeted violence against healthcare professionals in Pakistan, we strongly demand that concrete steps be taken towards upholding the rights of physicians, and providing the security required to practice medicine with diligence and expertise, and without fear of harassment and threat to life.

Faisal Cheema, MD
President, AKUAANA

Rizwan Khalid, MD
President, APPNA

Joint statement by APPNA and AKUAANA against violence

Posted on at

AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship Recipients announced for 2020-21

By

Dear All:

Since its inception AKUAANA-JRM Scholarships have had a wonderful impact on several AKUMC students in achieving their goals to pursue their electives in underserved areas within Pakistan and also at competitive institutions in USA.

Anticipating travel challenges due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic, AKUAANA and JRM Foundation leadership adopted a new ad hoc strategy for this year and instead of selecting only 2 students to travel, they decided to recognize 5 recipients so that the AKUAANA-JRM award can help them defray their costs for future post-graduate training.

It is my immense pleasure to announce the AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship recipients for the year 2020-21:

  1. Asma Altaf Hussain, ’21
  2. Hamza Bangash, ’21
  3. Hussain Raza, ’21
  4. Muhammad Musaab Munir, ’21
  5. Russell Seth Martins, ’21

All recipients will be awarded U.S. $1,000/-, each.

I would like to extend my gratitude to JRM Foundation leadership (Drs. Fahim Rahim ’97, Naeem Rahim ’98, Haderline, Willmore, Mrs. Beenish Mannan, Mrs. Amna Rahim and Mr. Sanders) for their generous donation as well as AKUAANA’s JRM Committee members Dr. Faiz Bhora ’92, Dr. Namirah Jamshed ’96, Dr. Fahim Rahim ’97 & Dr. Naeem Rahim ’98 led by Dr. Ammar Asrar Javed ’13 for all of their efforts in this regard.

Once again, congratulations to all recipients of AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship. Continue to work hard and keep making your AKU family proud of your achievements.

Best wishes,

Faisal H. Cheema, MD | President, AKUAANA
Twitter: @DocCheema

On behalf of AKUAANA Executive Council:

Faisal H. Cheema, President | Abdul Waheed, Secretary | Tauseef Ur Rehman, Treasurer | Namirah Jamshed, Immediate Past President

Follow Us on Twitter: @AKUAANA

AKUAANA – JRM Scholarship Recipients: 2020-2021


Asma Altaf Hussain Merchant is a 4th year Medical Student who is passionate to pursue a career in surgery, specifically Cardiothoracic Surgery. Her interest lies in improving the quality of patient care and has co-founded “Multilingual Health”, an application focused on reducing the language barriers faced in healthcare. She is currently the Vice President of the Student Research Forum and the Society of Cardiac Sciences Collaboration, as well as the Director of Event Administration at the Surgery Interest Group. Her academic interests include surgical outcomes research and quality improvement.


Hamza Bangash is a Year IV MBBS Student who aims to pursue Internal Medicine and Healthcare Administration. Hamza has served as CEO of Quadragon, a student run NGO working to alleviate poverty in Pakistan, and currently serves as Treasurer at Falah, a student led non-profit organization operating within AKU.

 


Hussain Raza is currently a fourth-year Medical Student at The Aga Khan University who has a strong desire for pursuing medicine and academia. He is an active member of multiple student societies and holds leadership positions in Falah and Cardiac Sciences Collaboration. He is a passionate researcher who is still discovering his career interests, with cardiology being the specialty he is currently inclined towards. Hussain strongly believes in patient empathy and his goal is to become an academic physician who can make a difference in the field of medicine.


Muhammad Musaab Munir is a 4th Year Medical Student who is passionate about pursuing a career in General Surgery. He is interested in global surgery, surgical outcomes, disparities and inequities research. He is an avid reader who likes to read fiction, indulges in basketball, and enjoys travelling and exploring new cuisines.

 


Russell Seth Martins is a 4th Year Medical Student at The Aga Khan University with aspirations of a career in Surgery, Medical Education, and Public Health. He is an avid researcher, with interests in disparities in medical education and healthcare, and environmentalism in medicine. He currently serves as Director of the Research & Development Wing of the Society for Promoting Innovation in Education at the Aga Khan University.

Posted on at

AKU Alumni Association of North America Annual Meeting, 2020

By

Dear Alumni, the AKUAANA Annual Meeting for 2020 is scheduled for 11:30 AM EST on December 12, 2020.

The Business Meeting will include President, Secretary and Treasurer’s reports and will be followed by a brief Q/A session.

Thereafter, attendees will get an opportunity to hear from Guest Speakers and shall have plenty of time to virtually hang out with friends, colleagues as well as the leadership of both AKU & AKUAANA.

Alumni interested in attending the Meeting can register here.

Please consider signing up for AKUAANA membership if you aren’t a member already.

AKUAANA Executive Council
President: Faisal Cheema | Secretary: Abdul Waheed | Treasurer: Tauseef ur Rehman | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed

Posted on at

AKU Alumna Dr Namirah Jamshed (1996) awarded Program Development Award for developing Care of the Vulnerable Elderly (COVE) program

By

Dr Namirah Jamshed ’96, Associate Professor in the Departments of Internal Medicine and Family and Community Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center has been awarded the Program Development Award for establishing and developing the Care of the Vulnerable Elderly (COVE) program. The award celebrates the innovation and collaboration that are foundational to the success of UT Southwestern Medical Center. It recognizes a group of clinical faculty and staff who have worked together as a team to create, develop, and sustain an innovative program that significantly advances the ability to improve the care provided to patients.

UT Southwestern’s COVE program (Care of the Vulnerable Elderly) was established in 2015 to serve patients ages 65 and older, and provide primary care for patients both at home and in assisted living facilities. These patients are referred by a UTSW clinic because they have difficulty performing daily activities or are challenged to come to their providers’ offices for medical appointments. COVE-provided care also helps alleviate some caregiver burdens.

Started with just 70 patients, the program today delivers care to nearly 350 seniors who live within 10 miles of UT Southwestern’s campus. Care is provided by an interdisciplinary team that includes geriatric-trained physicians, nurse practitioners, a registered nurse, a licensed social worker, and a clinical coordinator.

Proof of the program’s effectiveness is shown in the numbers: a reduction in Emergency Department visits, hospitalizations, and outpatient visits. One analysis indicated that compared to similar patients who did not receive home visits, UT Southwestern COVE patients had 12 percent fewer emergency room visits, nearly 35 percent fewer hospitalizations, almost 17 percent fewer readmissions, and 29 percent fewer specialist visits.

Because of its impressive success, UTSW’s COVE program has been invited to help develop national benchmarks for elder care, one of only nine programs tapped to participate in the effort by the Learning Collaborative for Home-Based Medical Care.

In Dr Namirah’s words, “The COVE team is humbled and honored to receive this award. We aim to provide high-quality patient care to the most vulnerable of our patient population. This requires not only an interdisciplinary approach but also significant collaboration with our specialists and patient caregivers. The program’s success is a reflection of hard work among the team and support from leadership. Central to this success are our patients and caregivers, who trust us with their care and allow us into their homes. The COVE team will continue to work above and beyond to provide the highest-quality care to our patients, as a reflection of the care provided throughout UT Southwestern.”

Source and photo credit: Program Development Award, CenterTimes

Posted on at

Dr Abdul Waheed, AKU ’05 elected as Secretary of AKUAANA (2020-21)

By

Dear Fellow Alumni:

The Executive Council of AKUAANA has concluded the process to fill the vacant position of the Secretary. A group of four highly accomplished AKU Alumni, with extremely impressive track records, were nominated for this position. After taking into consideration various factors, the Executive Council voted. Whereas one candidate was chosen, all nominated alumni will be offered other opportunities to closely work with AKUAANA Executive Council in other initiatives.

The Executive Council of AKUAANA takes immense pleasure in introducing the next Secretary, Dr Abdul Waheed. His off-cycle term will start from November 10, 2020 and conclude on December 31, 2021.

A graduate of the class of 2005, Dr Abdul Waheed did his residency training in family medicine from Penn State Hershey Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. He is the Family Medicine residency program director at WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon, Pennsylvania and Clinical Associate Professor of Family & Community Medicine at Penn State University College of Medicine and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. He is a member of Pennsylvania Academy of Family Physicians (PAFP) Continuous Professional Development Committee. He has special interest in capacity building in research and scholarship as well as faculty and resident academic development in low resource and community hospital settings. Prior to joining WellSpan Health, he successfully developed alternative models and novel approaches towards faculty and resident academic development in collaboration with Penn State University College of Medicine in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Dr Waheed is a frequent speaker at regional and national forums including the ACGME Annual Educational Conference, Society of Teachers of Family Medicine, and Pennsylvania Academy of Family Physicians. He has an impressive track record of scholarly activity including over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and contributions to book chapters. In his leisure, he loves to write poetry in Urdu and read a range of topics including fiction, poetry, sociology, religion, philosophy, and history. He is also founding Chair of Board Governors for Al-Shaoor Library and Al-Shaoor Forum that strives for positive social change and social justice in Kahna Nau, suburban Lahore, Pakistan where he grew up.

The Executive Council of AKUAANA looks forward to working with Dr Abdul Waheed and benefit from his voluntary services as he is eager to help his fellow alumni and alma mater.

Sincerely,

Faisal Cheema
President | AKUAANA

On behalf of the AKUAANA Executive Council
President: Faisal Cheema | Treasurer: Tauseef ur Rehman | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed

Posted on at

Webinar: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – Challenges for the International Medical Graduate

By

Dear friends, we are excited to share that AKUAANA is hosting a webinar on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – Challenges for the International Medical Graduate.

The event is scheduled on Saturday, November 28th 2020 at 10 AM Central Standard Time.

The panelists of the webinar include the following alumni:

Academic Success: Lessons learned as a Woman, Mother and Scientist over 30 years

Maliha Zahid MD, AKU ’93
Assistant Professor, Department of Developmental Biology and Cardiology, University of Pittsburgh
Chief Scientific Officer & Board Member, Vivasc Therapeutics Inc., Pittsburgh PA

Unboxing Hidden Personal Biases and Continuing Struggles

Faisal G. Qureshi MD, MBA, AKU ’93
Associate Professor, Surgery & Pediatrics
Directory, Surgical Weight Loss Program, UT Southwestern and Children’s Medical Center

 

Small Town Pakistan to Surgery

Tayyaba M. Malik MD, AKU ’14
4th Year General Surgery Resident, UTSW
Cardiovascular and Thoracic Fellow, 2021

 

 

Moderator

Namirah Jamshed MD, AKU ’96
Associate Professor, Internal Medicine & Family and Community Medicine
Medical Director of the UTSW Care of the Vulnerable Elderly (COVE) Home-Based Primary Care Program UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas TX

The event will be hosted on Zoom, and is open for colleagues from all institutions. Please register here for the webinar.

Please consider signing up for AKUAANA membership if you aren’t a member already.

Looking forward to your attendance and discussion in this webinar.

AKUAANA Executive Council
Faisal H. Cheema, President | Abdul Waheed, Secretary | Tauseef-Ur-Rehman, Treasurer | Namirah Jamshed, Immediate Past President

Posted on at

Opening of nominations for AKUAANA Secretary, 2020-21

By

Dear Fellow Alumni:

AKUAANA is currently seeking nominations to fill the vacant position of AKUAANA Secretary. This off-cycle term will start from November 1, 2020 and conclude on December 31, 2021.

Per Article IV, Section F, Sub-Section III of the AKUAANA Constitution and Bylaws, The Executive Council (EC) of AKUAANA has the authority to select any active member to fill the office of Secretary should it become vacant. However, the current AKUAANA EC would like to engage the membership in this process. Therefore, if you desire to contribute to your alma mater and fellow alumni on this wonderful platform, please submit your nominations to president@akuaana.org by 5 PM EST, October 30, 2020. Self-nominations are welcome as well. The AKUAANA EC will announce the new Secretary, after consulting with the AKUAANA Board of Advisors, on November 1, 2020.

All Executive Council members must be Active Annual members or Lifetime members of AKUAANA for at least twelve months prior to initiation of their term and be actively residing in North America for the duration of the office. For further details of eligibility and the process, kindly refer to Article IV (Governance and Structure) Section C of the AKUAANA Constitution and Bylaws. The responsibilities of the Secretary are detailed out in Article IV, Section D, Sub-Section III.

The AKUAANA EC is extremely grateful for the services of our fellow alumnus, Dr Haresh Kumar, who served as Secretary AKUAANA in 2020 and did an excellent job. He expressed his desire to step down in order to concentrate more on his busy Nephrology practice. We wish him the best in his future endeavors and look forward to continuing to benefit from his wisdom and voluntary services.

Sincerely,

Faisal Cheema
President | AKUAANA

On behalf of AKUAANA EC [President: Faisal Cheema | Treasurer: Tauseef ur Rehman | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed]

Posted on at

Applications for AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship, 2020-21

By

The AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship Fund is the result of a collaboration between AKUAANA and JRM (Jamshed-Rahim-Mannan) Foundation for Humanity, an Idaho based non-profit started by two AKU alumni, Dr. Fahim Rahim, ’97 and Dr. Naeem Rahim, ’98. We created this fund to provide financial relief for medical students pursuing electives in North America. You can find further details for eligibility for the scholarship here.

This year, the AKUAANA-JRM scholarship committee has decided to waive the requirement for an elective in an under-served area for the 2020 application because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Applicants can view a sample of the online application here. Please note that only submissions made via the online application portal for the AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship will be accepted.

This year, AKUAANA will be accepting applications from AKUMC Class of 2021 via our online application portal, which opened on August 10th, 2020. The deadline for submission will be 11:59 PM EST, September 30th, 2020.

Please feel free to contact Ammar Javed ’13 at ammar.aku@gmail.com for queries directed to the AKUAANA-JRM committee.

Posted on at

AKUAANA’s Request for COVID-19 Donations

By

Dear AKUAANA Family:

During these unprecedented times that have engulfed the entire globe, we have entered an ever-changing phase of reality which shall continue to impact all aspects of our lives.

Many of you must already be fighting in the front-lines by taking care of your patients in these trying times. And some of you have been leading from the front within the domains of public health, policy making, social welfare and entrepreneurship. Our alma mater in Pakistan is also leading by example under its dynamic leadership.

Hailing from Pakistan and living in our adopted homeland of USA, our responsibilities are manifold. The needs are acute and the demands are inestimable. We have a sacred duty to rise up and address these challenges head on, together! At AKUAANA, we have identified the following platforms through which donations can be made:

1. AKU Foundation
• Regular donations can be made at AKU Foundation
• For Zakat donations, please donate at The i-Care Foundation (Choose “The Patients Behbud Society for AKUH” and add “COVID-19 Testing” as free text.)

2. Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America [APPNA]

Whereas AKU Foundation is helping with COVID-19 testing kits in Pakistan, APPNA is primarily helping with food pantries across USA as well as other relief efforts in Pakistan including providing PPE gear to the healthcare workers.

On behalf of the Executive Council of AKUAANA, I would like to urge all of you to support these relief efforts to the best of your abilities. Your donations will be of paramount importance in ensuring that all critical relief efforts continue, and that, as the demand grows, the capacity to help also does. All charitable donations will be considered tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

If you or anyone else you know, within AKUAANA family, is in need of help, please immediately inform us so that we can pool resources to help.

Keep working hard and stay safe. You all remain in our prayers and thoughts!

Most Sincerely,

Faisal H. Cheema, AKU ’2000 | President, AKUAANA

Secretary: Haresh Kumar, AKU ’03 | Treasurer: Tauseef-ur-Rehman, AKU ’07 | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed, AKU ’96

Posted on at

Outgoing AKUAANA President’s Message to Alumni, December 2019

By

Dear Alumni,

2019 is coming to an end and it has been a great year for the AKU Alumni Association of North America (AKUAANA). The last twelve months have been filled with momentous occasions such as the appointment of our alumnus, Adil Haider ’98 as Dean of AKUMC, Karachi to the presentation of Saad Omar (also ’98) to the US Congress. Our alumni have reached heights in academics, private practice, health policy, bioinformatics and as entrepreneurs across this nation.

Unfortunately, we lost three amazing and beloved alumni, Uzma Yunus ’95, Fida Khan ’97 and Asma Saleem ’90. The alumni community feels their loss and prays for their families. As this year ends, we celebrate all our alumni who are with us, and those who are not.

We had our annual Alumni Reunion in Orlando this July. Adil Haider ’98, first alumnus Dean of AKUMC and his family, honored us with their presence. It is these momentous occasions we look forward to as an ultimate way to give back to our alma mater. Thank you for your continued participation and support of this alumni association.

It takes every one of us to make this work, and together we can make sure that AKUAANA is here to grow and make a difference, not only in Pakistan and at AKU but also locally in the United States.

AKUAANA is 100% volunteer-run. As the President, I value every minute that is devoted by our Executive Council and member volunteers to our mission: to establish a platform to promote and facilitate healthcare, educational, social, and philanthropic missions of our community, and to nurture enduring ties with our alma mater.

Every year our volunteer Executive Council, Board of Advisors, and sub-committee members go above and beyond in their commitment and service to the organization, and we celebrate those individuals now: Ammar Javed ’13, Faiz Bhora ’92, Azam Kundi ’92, Nooruddin Punjwani ’92, Adnan Hyder ’90, Saleem Islam ’92, Fahim Rahim ’97 and Naeem Rahim ’98. AKUAANA thanks each and every one of these alumni for their dedication to this organization. We hope that they will continue to share their time and expertise with AKUAANA and look forward to recruiting more people like them!

In fact, everyone can jump in and sign up to become members and volunteer for various committees for the next year. One of the best ways to really get connected with other alumni is to become members of your alumni organization. Join us at our annual Alumni Reunion to reconnect with old friends, make new ones, to find mentors for career and other guidance, and most of all for coming up with ideas to strengthen and grow your alumni organization.

AKUAANA is a young association. We have a long way to go. If we want AKUAANA to be the resource that we think it should be, then there is only one way to do that. Join AKUAANA and participate as a member. Dream a small part of your dreams, through AKUAANA, to make it a household name, that your family and children can be proud of.

To those who have recently graduated; be curious, remain relentless, and don’t give up on your dream and you will reach greatness! And when you have, spread your wisdom and experiences through your alumni association.

I would like to thank our amazing Executive Council for 2018-19, Past President Habib Chotani ’95; Secretary Noor Afshan Khan ’96; Treasurer and President-Elect Faisal Cheema ’00 and Web Manager Abdul Basit Saeed ’07. I have had the privilege to lead our alumni association with such a great team of people for the past two years. That tenure is coming to an end, but not my commitment to advocate for our alumni here in the US. At the end of the year, I pass on the baton to Faisal Cheema ’00; I know that he will take the association in the direction that is best for us and look forward to working with him.

Best regards
Namirah Jamshed ’96
AKUAANA President, 2018-2019

Posted on at

AKUAANA

About AKUAANA
Current Leadership
Status and Structure
Executive Council
Contact Us

Chapters

North America
Asia

Follow Us Online