17/09/2026
The pioneer of the nursing program at SIUT was a woman named Shehnaz. Filled with passion and rigor, she relocated to Karachi from Lahore alone, with nothing but studies on her mind.
Shehnaz started her nursing journey at Civil Hospital and pursued her postgraduate studies at Jinnah Medical College. Upon return to Civil Hospital, she was met with a newly found institution that would change her life forever.
Starting at what was an 8-bed small ward at Civil, she partnered up with her roommates Azra and Sajida to take care of the nursing at the ward, which would later become known as SIUT. Motivated, she took it upon herself to fulfil multiple roles at once: the doctor, caretaker, sweeper, and counsellor. Aiming to gain financial independence, she was constantly on her feet, juggling shifts at the hospital and a private clinic every morning, dedicating night and day for her duties.
Shehnaz barely pulled through, running on 3 hours of sleep every day. Like any human, she recalls the initial struggle: "mein roti bhi bohat thi kyunke jawan thi ke ham kahan phas gaye" (I used to cry because I was young, thinking, "What have I gotten myself into?”) But that did not stop her from pursuing patient care; “magar patients ko dekh ke mujhe ehsas hoa ke nahi mujhe yahi krna hai and yaheen rehna hai" (but looking at the patients I realised that I want to do this and stay here).
She continued to learn side by side with her clinical responsibilities but always put patient care first.
Her dedication to SIUT’s cause was incomparable. She once gave up on an opportunity to pursue an MSN (Master's in Nursing) program in order to take care of the transplant ICU wing.
She shares a heart-touching anecdote: “Adib sahab ne humesha kaha tha interest lena hai, punctual hona hai, baaki education ka main bandobast kardoonga” (Sir Adib always used to tell me to be interested in what I am doing, as well as be punctual; he will arrange the rest of the education).
Her efforts for her patients were never in vain, often leading to full-circle moments when they returned to see her years later. One such patient was Altaf, an 11-year-old boy who became one of the first to undergo a kidney transplant at SIUT. She spent countless hours caring for him, even bringing his favourite foods from her own kitchen. Years later, whenever Altaf visits SIUT for his follow-ups, he makes a point of meeting Shehnaz, the nurse who cared for him through one of the most challenging periods of his life.
After being handpicked by Dr Adib to perform the role of matron nurse, she handled administrative tasks and still stayed on the field for patient care. Serving at SIUT for over 40 years, Shehnaz keeps her heart filled with empathy and care. She currently leads the nursing wing at SIUT and ensures patients are always looked after with dignity.
