Aga Khan University Alumni Association of North America

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AKUAANA Hajj 2026 packages

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Dear AKUAANA family,

AKUAANA is proud to collaborate with Universal Brothers (Pvt Ltd), and offer 5% discount on their Hajj 2026 packages on Pakistani passports to AKUAANA members and their immediate family members. AKU alumni across the globe, including those living in North America, UK and Pakistan, are eligible for the discount.

Please note that to receive the 5% discount on all Hajj packages, this Hajj registration form needs to be filled out.

  • Fields with a red asterisk are required fields, such as name of pilgrim, next of kin
  • In the Company’s Name / Organization field, please enter ‘AKUAANA’
  • Home address and CNIC/NICOP/Pakistani Passport number are optional

The Pakistani government is ensuring early enrollment due to last year’s Saudi / Hajj visa issues. There are more than 25 packages available to choose from, through Universal Brothers. After deliberations, these preferred packages with various price ranges and options were selected for AKU alumni. The enrollment period is from August 25, 2025 through September 25, 2025 with confirmed spots, and afterwards subject to availability.

On behalf of the AKUAANA Executive Council, have a safe and spiritual journey.

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AKU Alumni Association of North America Inaugural Meeting and Gala, 2025

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Dear Alumni,

The AKUAANA Inaugural Meeting and Gala, 2025 is taking place from September 19-21, 2025 in Houston, Texas at Marriott Sugar Land.

With over 1000 AKUMC alumni in practice in USA, the three-day event is expected to be a large, first-of-its-kind event with attendance by physicians from not only North America, but also overseas international graduates and practicing physicians with their families. The meeting will include academic sessions, networking events, a formal gala, and wellness activities.


Alumni interested in attending this exciting event can register here.

For those interested in sponsoring the event, further details can be found on the event sponsorship page.

President, AKUAANA: Faisal Wasi
Meeting Chair: Mirwat Sami
Meeting Co-Chair: Nooruddin Punjwani

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Soliciting Feedback regarding Proposed Amendments to the AKUAANA Constitution and Bylaws, 2024

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Dear AKUAANA Members,

As the Executive Council of AKUAANA, we are requesting the approval of the revised Constitution and Bylaws of AKUAANA reflecting the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Aga Khan University signed on February 4th, 2023.

The Executive Council has unanimously approved these revised Constitution and Bylaws of AKUAANA. The revisions were deliberated upon and incorporated with unanimous recommendations from the Constitution and Bylaws (CABL) committee, chaired by Dr Atif Shafqat ’93 and Board of Advisors (BOA), chaired by Dr. Faisal Qureshi ’93. The Executive Council sincerely appreciates their active participation and is also very thankful to Dr Shafqat’s and Dr Qureshi’s input along with that of all other members of the CABL and BOA for their advice and expert input during this process.

Primarily the main objectives of the proposed revisions are to:

  1. create an alumni association that partners with our Alma Mater, The Aga Khan University to help promote the collaborative vision, mission and objectives in North America
  2. AKU will provide operational and administrative assistance to AKUAANA
  3. AKU alumni who reside in North America will automatically become members of AKUAANA
  4. AKUAANA will create autonomous regional chapters under the umbrella of AKUAANA
  5. AKUAANA will become a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and will also continue to work with the Aga Khan Foundation USA to promote the welfare of the alumni

Please review the revised CABL and we aim to get your vote for approval on July 5th, 2024, at the Alumni Annual Meeting. It will also be shared via Facebook and on email. Your participation is essential in building our Alumni Association.

Regards,

Executive Council, AKUAANA
Faisal Wasi, President | president@akuaana.org
Hina Hussain, Secretary | secretary@akuaana.org
Aqueel Hussain Pabaney, Treasurer | treasurer@akuaana.org
Abdul Waheed, Immediate Past President

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Dr. Bakht Roshan nominated for ‘Public Health Champion Award’ by State of California’s Madera County

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Dr. Bakht Roshan is a graduate of AKU Class of 2000 and an Infectious Disease specialist affiliated with Madera Commonity Hospital (MCH), Madera, California. In order to prepare for the COVID-19 surge, MCH formed a committee which was led by Dr. Roshan. This committee remained instrumental against challenges of COVID-19. Dr. Roshan also spearheaded the efforts to secure, promote, and prescribe monoclonal antibody treatment to COVID-19 patients. In recognition of Dr. Roshan’s exemplary leadership for combating the COVID-19 pandemic, Madera Department of Public Health has selected Dr. Roshan for the esteemed “Public Health Champion Award”.

Addressing the Board of Supervisors of Madera County, Dr. Roshan acknowledged the support from his family, the administration of MCH, Madera Department of Public Health, and his fellow physicians serving on the MCH COVID-19 committee.

Dr. Roshan and other AKU alumni continue to make us all proud of their wonderful achievements.

Regards,

Faisal H. Cheema
President | AKUAANA

On behalf of AKUAANA EC [President: Faisal Cheema | Secretary: Abdul Waheed | Treasurer: Tauseef ur Rehman | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed | Ex-Officio Member: Abdul Basit Saeed]

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AKUAANA announces Ad Hoc Committee on Advocacy – Commitment to Raising Awareness & Supporting AKU Alumni

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Dear Alumni:

By now, you may have heard the unfortunate news about Dr. Azam Ali, an alumnus of AKU Class of 1988 and one of the top ophthalmologists in Pakistan who became a target of belligerent violence (Video Links one and two).

Joining hands with APPNA, a joint statement was issued by AKUAANA in this regard to raise the voice and condemn such violence against healthcare professionals. We are grateful to APPNA’s President, an alumnus of AKU Class of 1999, Dr. Rizwan Khalid, for his prompt action. Several other letters and communications are underway in this regard.

Since addressing such matters requires coordination of efforts, thus to achieve optimum results in an efficient manner, the AKUAANA Executive Council (EC) has decided to set up an Ad Hoc Committee on Advocacy, which will remain dedicated to matters of social justice that are close to the heart of membership of AKUAANA. This ad hoc committee will present its report during the AKUAANA Annual Meeting (July 2021) and thereafter with mutual consultation, its status may be changed from an ad hoc committee to a permanent standing committee within AKUAANA, with the composition of its members changing from time to time. Dr. Syed H. Jafri has kindly agreed to Chair this ad hoc committee while Dr. Syed Bakhtiyar will serve as Co-Chair.

On behalf of AKUAANA EC, I am announcing the AKUAANA Ad Hoc Committee on Advocacy as follows:

AKUAANA Ad Hoc Committee on Advocacy, 2021
Members
NameClass
Syed H. Jafri2001Chair
Syed Shahyan Bakhtiyar2016Co-Chair
Sohail Noor1992
Lara Zuberi2000
Sumbul Ali2005
Volunteers
Farwa Ayub2016
Romesa Ibrahim2016
Abdul Basit Saeed2007

The AKUAANA EC will not only be a part of this ad hoc committee but shall remain committed to offering all the support this Committee may need in raising the voice and fulfilling all other goals it sets surrounding any issue involving our alumni.

If you have a passion for social justice and would like to volunteer your valuable time to such causes, please reach out to the Chair of Ad Hoc Committee on Advocacy, Dr. Jafri, at shrjafri@hotmail.com.

Regards,

Faisal H. Cheema
President | AKUAANA

On behalf of AKUAANA EC [President: Faisal Cheema | Secretary: Abdul Waheed | Treasurer: Tauseef ur Rehman | Immediate Past President: Namirah Jamshed | Ex-Officio Member: Abdul Basit Saeed]

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

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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

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AKUAANA-JRM Scholarship Recipients announced for 2020-21

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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.

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AKU Alumni Association of North America Annual Meeting, 2020

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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

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

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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

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

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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

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