Dr. Abdul Bari Khan to receive 2026 Hovey Impact Award

Pakistani physician honored by Eisenhower Fellowships for bringing free health care to millions

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Abdul Bari Khan, founder and president of the Indus Hospital & Health Network, today was named recipient of the 2026 James and Carol Hovey Eisenhower Fellowships Impact Award for building one of the world's largest networks providing high-quality health care, serving millions of patients free of cost.

Khan, an Eisenhower Fellow from Pakistan in 2004, was selected for EF's fourth annual Hovey Impact Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by an Eisenhower Fellow in generating positive impact in their society.

Launched 18 years ago as a single 150-bed hospital in Karachi, Indus has grown under Khan's leadership into a nationwide health system serving more than six million patients annually. Today, the Indus network includes 12 multidisciplinary hospitals, four regional blood centers, three physical rehabilitation centers and more than 100 primary care sites and public health initiatives across Pakistan.

Over the last year, the network performed more than 67,000 surgeries and recorded more than 214,000 hospital admissions, 2.9 million outpatient visits and 1.4 million emergency room visits. Its work also included more than 16,000 safe deliveries, care for more than 212,000 mental health beneficiaries and malaria screenings for more than 6.3 million people.

"Dr. Bari Khan has transformed his personal vision into an extraordinary national system that has saved countless lives and safeguarded the health of millions of people every year," said Eisenhower Fellowships President George de Lama. "His leadership and commitment to provide excellent care with dignity to Pakistan's most vulnerable communities exemplify the mission of Eisenhower Fellowships."

Khan and his work were selected from a highly competitive field of more than 45 project submissions by a distinguished panel of Eisenhower Fellowships Trustees, Fellows, outside experts and senior staff. Khan will receive a $10,000 USD award to help advance and sustain the work of the Indus network.

EF Trustee Jim Hovey, former vice chairman of the EF Board of Trustees and chairman of its Executive Committee, will present Khan with the award that he and his wife Carol endowed at the 2026 Eisenhower Fellowships Impact Award Dinner and Pin Ceremony on November 11 at the Liberty View in Philadelphia.

Eisenhower Fellowships is an independent, nongovernmental, nonpartisan nonprofit, one of the world's premier international leadership exchange organizations. Founded in 1953 as a birthday present to President Eisenhower his first year in the White House by a group of Philadelphia businessmen friends, EF has brought to the United States or sent overseas on individualized fellowships more than 2,700 leaders of all professional fields from 118 countries to advance its mission to enhance international understanding through dialogue.

Media Contact: Katherine Leventhal
Director, Global Network Programs 
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Eisenhower Fellowships