At the best of times, there is chaos at Jinnah Hospital’s emergency ward, and since Karachi is no stranger to violence and accidents, the ward is the busiest in the country.

Amidst the gurneys being wheeled in, Edhi ambulance sirens blaring, relatives wailing, the doctors and nurses calmly carry on their work. It is best to check in stereotypes of government hospitals at the entrance because the ward defies what you and I have come to believe is the norm at such hospitals.

The ward is clean, the instruments are hygienic, the sheets are washed, the attendants are attentive and there is order amongst the chaos. At the centre of it all issuing instructions patiently as she hears the concerns of doctors, patients and their relatives is a formidable woman, Dr Seemi Jamali, shattering yet more stereotypes.

Dr Jamali knew at the age of six that she wanted to be a doctor; it had been her dying mother’s wish and she wanted to make her dream come true. Her journey took off in Nawabshah where she attended the medical school and years later ended up at Jinnah hospital at the behest of her father, who wanted her to work for a government institution.