Member Lahore Board

Saman Yazdani Khan

Director at Centre for Health & Population Studies

  • 2015 to date- Board Member (alternate), Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), The Secretariat hosted by WHO, Geneva 27, Switzerland
  • 2011 – Director/CEO, Centre for Health and Population Studies, Pakistan
  • International Research Associate, University of Washington (UW), Seattle, WA, USA: 2003-4. After selection as a Fellow in the Population Leadership Programme (PLP) in 2003, joined the University of Washington as a Research Associate.  The PLP Fellowship was conducted by three (3) schools at the University of Washington i.e. Centre for Studies in Demography and Ecology (CSDE), Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs and School of Public Health and Community Medicine &supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation & David-Lucille Packard Foundations.  Key duties included 1) promoting cultural exchange 2) political dialogues & discussion.
  • Professional affiliation with British Columbia Children & Women’s Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in spring quarter of 2004; the a professional affiliation was related to looking at the history of abortion in Canada and comparing it with abortion trends in south Asian society.
  • 2017: Friend of Human Development Foundation (HDF), Pakistan; (www.hdf.com).
  • Federal Monitor, 5th HIV IBBS Surveillance Project, National AIDS Control Programme; Govt. of Pakistan, November 2015
  • Member of working group on Social Capital, National Planning Commission, Islamabad, Pakistan: October 2013
  • Member: Technical working group on MMR estimation in collaboration with National Planning Commission, Islamabad, Pakistan: 2013
  • Regional Director/Deputy CEO, Shirkat Gah (SG) -Women’s Resource Centre, Pakistan: January 2009 –November 2010; SG is a leading Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) working on Women’s Rights in Pakistan since the last 35 years having offices in three (3) cities i.e. Lahore, Peshawar & Karachi. Its thematic areas included Livelihoods, Governance & Rights which are operationalized through the Women’s Empowerment & Social Justice Programme (WESJP).  Nested within the WESJP was the Women Living under Muslim Law (WLUML) project (a multi – country initiative) aimed at raising awareness regarding legal issues pertaining to Muslim Family Law.  As RD, I looked after the Lahore & Peshawar offices.  The programmes reporting to me were communication & publication, research & reproductive health, outreach & partnerships, advocacy & legal services.  Duties included strategizing each programme within WESJP, ensuring achievement of programmatic goals, resource generation, capacity development, liaisons with different stakeholders, looking after the National Secretariat of the Pakistan Reproductive Health Network (PRHN).  PRHN is a national network of 300+ organizations/individuals working in the field of RH in Pakistan.
  • Also set-up, organized & administered the Humanitarian wing of SG in the floods of 2010 & IDP situation of 2009.
  • Consultant Reproductive Health, Shirkat Gah (SG), Pakistan: August 2008 – December 2008; Advised SG on projects related to MDG5 e.g. the Packard project related to access to Family Planning and relationship to unsafe abortion, WRHAP project on Sexual and Reproductive Health rights etc.
  • National Programme Officer (NPO)- Making Pregnancy Safer (MPS); World Health Organization (WHO), Country Office, Islamabad, Pakistan – September 2006 to December 2007: Duties included 1) Developing, monitoring & evaluating maternal & Child Health country activities within the framework of the National Strategy for MNCH, in coordination with concerned UN & international agencies, non-governmental organizations, & other stakeholders; 2) Helping in providing technical support to the concerned national authorities at all levels for the monitoring, evaluation, & assessment of their MNCH (including MPS) related policies & strategies in order to ensure that the key elements of the Global Strategy & the Strategic Directions for Reducing Maternal Neonatal & Child Mortality in the Eastern Mediterranean Region are incorporated; 3) Providing technical back stopping to the local adaptation of relevant norms, standards, tools, technologies & interventions necessary for the Management of Pregnancy & Childbirth (IMPAC); & Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses (IMCI); 4) Aiding in monitoring & following up on WHO-supported programme activities for MNCH/RH/MPS/FP; 5) Attending related technical group meetings & other collaborative meetings & activities within Ministry of Heath, WHO & partner agencies 6) Assisting health authorities in developing an integrated Maternal, Newborn, & Child surveillance system using the available operation & implementation plan within the framework of National MNCH Programme & helping in building their capacities to effectively implement the child health strategies as envisaged & decided with the country MNCH team; 7) Building & sustaining partnerships for MNCH & providing technical input & participating in collaborative relevant activities; 8) Ensuring documentation of all activities & generation & submission of regular programme reports. 
  • Reproductive Health (RH) Focal Person, World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Cell; Islamabad, Pakistan; December 2005 to May 2006: Following the 2005 earthquake that hit northern area of Pakistan, I was appointed as the Reproductive Health (RH) Focal person in the Emergency cell at the WHO Emergency Cell in Islamabad. Duties included implementing RH Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP), designing & conducting RH capacity building activities including Emergency Obstetric & Neonatal Care (EmONC), Maternal Health, Ante natal care, HIV/STDs, Adolescent RH, Natal care, Post natal care, Birthing plan, Gender & sex, Gender Based Violence (GBSV), Family Planning/Birth spacing, Newborn care for the staff of the Department of Health of the Govt. of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) & Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK); This was carried out in the field at the United Nations (UN) field hubs located at Muzaffarabad, Bagh in Azad Jammu & Kashmir & Mansehra, Balakot, & Battagram in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
  • Environmental Health Officer, World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Cell, Pakistan; October 2005 to November 2005.
  • Director, Centre for Health & Population Studies (CHPS), Pakistan; September 2000 to September 2003: Responsibilities at the Centre include both managerial & academic.  Administrative duties included setting up & maintaining different organizational & financial systems, liaison with outside agencies, day to day management of the Centre, & overall coordination of all of the activities of CHPS.  Academic duties included teaching Population & demography, Reproductive health etc., curriculum development, faculty hire, student admissions & research.  Research included work on health management; on child labour; on reproductive health including on HIV/AIDS; Behavioural Change Communication for sexual & reproductive health rights etc.
  • Director, Centre for Health Management Sciences (CHMS), Pakistan; February 1999 to September 2000: Duties included conceptualizing & setting up the entire institute. From financial support to hiring premises, hiring faculty, admitting student, conducting the administrative affairs with the Dean & also teaching reproductive health & demography to MPH students.
  • Programme Organizer & Assistant Professor- MPH programme; 1997 – 1998: Set-up & initiated the Master in Public Health (MPH) for the 1st time in Pakistan in the private sector, at Pakistan American Institute of Management Sciences, Lahore.
  • Programme officer, Health & Nutrition, UNICEF, Punjab; April to September 1998: Key responsibilities included following up on UNICEF projects e.g. Baby Friendly Hospital initiative, salt iodination, flour fortification etc
  • Senior Health Planner; Provincial Human Resource Development Unit (PHRDU), Department of Health (DoH), Government of Punjab (GoP), Lahore; June 1996 – June 1997: As the Senior Health Planner of the Provincial Human Resource Development Unit, Department of Health, Gov. of Punjab, Lahore, key duties included gathering data on the current Human resource in the DoH in the Punjab (one of the largest public sector departments), setting up a database & dissemination of information.
  • Medical Officer; Baluchistan Health Survey Team, National Health Survey of Pakistan, Quetta, Baluchistan. The Pakistan Medical & Research Council (PMRC) conducted the survey in collaboration with USAID; 1993
  • Coordinator & Resident Medical Officer: May 1992: Rehman Clinic, Baltistan Health & Educational Foundation, Skardu, Baltistan. Duties included conducting outpatient’s clinic, weekly village medical field camp, training of TBA’s, emergency relief & general administration of the Clinic.
  • Demonstrator, Microbiology; 1990: Sheikh Zayed Hospital (SZH), Lahore, Pakistan.
  • Medical Officer; August 19th 1986 – August 18th 1988: Internal Medicine, SZH, Lahore.
  • Resident Medical Officer; International Red Crescent/Cross Referral Hospital for Afghan refugees, Kalabagh, Pakistan; August 1st to September 1st
  • Casualty Medical Officer (CMO); CMO from 01/01/86 to 25/07/1986 at Shalimar/ Businessmen Trust Hospital, Lahore.
  • House Job; 1984 -1985: Medicine & Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Lahore

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