Ms. Sakina Batool joined VFAHT in 2017, in her first year of medical school, and has been a valuable asset ever since. She has served in both her university’s Local Council (Fatima Jinnah Medical University) as well as the National Council, as a holder of multiple posts: Social Media Secretary, Secretary Research and Publications, General Secretary, Vice President Central Punjab, and President VFAHT. During the course of her medical school, which she completes next year, she has partaken in and helped organize multiple events under the banner of VFAHT, including the Annual Volunteers Congress, safe dental practice workshops, injection safety workshops, hand hygiene protocol education in schools, hepatitis screening, and awareness camps, social media campaigns and webinars pertaining to COVID-19, etc. She is driven to participate in all these activities due to her strong commitment and dedication toward public health and awareness, possessing a deep insight and understanding of the relevant problems that plague our society. She is a strong believer in addressing and breaking stigmas and traversing barriers to achieve healthcare goals, and so she has helped organize competitions and campaigns to curtail the stigma surrounding HIV, TB, etc., and has tried to enhance inclusivity under the domain of VFAHT by conducting transgender health camps as well, being resilient and passionate to continually be more sensitive and inclusive of other marginalized communities in future as well.
Working towards a good cause for the cause itself and not for any underlying motives is rewarding in itself, and that is exactly the kind of purposefulness I believe volunteer work entails. Using the knowledge, skill set and money that we have been privileged to acquire/be blessed with, it – at least to me – feels morally incumbent to try to use the same to benefit those not as privileged in these regards. It is what makes people, human, and it is mutually beneficial: there is nothing more rewarding than seeing the smile on somebody’s face when the services you provide help make their lives a little easier to live. Let’s all acknowledge our own endless capabilities and use them to brighten people’s days, one day at a time, and play our part in reducing the existing burden of disease, by means of awareness, screening, counseling, and proper follow-up – thus moving towards a safer, healthier Pakistan.