No funds to back emergency response

NHEPRN works for procuring drugs to meet health emergency


Sehrish Wasif August 05, 2016
According to the Met Office spokesman, monsoon currents have started to penetrate the southern parts of the country that will produce rain/thunderstorm at scattered places. PHOTO: APP

ISLAMABAD: Federal authorities have not allocated any funds for the National Health Emergency Preparedness & Response Network (NHEPRN) to meet any health emergency during natural calamities, it has been learnt.

Citing the monsoon contingency Plan for 2016, NHEPRN’s deputy director (operations) Dr Sabina Durrani told The Express Tribune that all provinces have to spend half of their funds for disaster preparedness while the remaining half has to be spent by the federal government as a back-up support for the provinces.

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Unlike the network, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) gets funds from the Prime Minister’s Office for procuring food, shelter and carrying out relief activities, Durrani said.

“Yet no funds have been allocated to the NHEPRN, which functions under the federal ministry of health, and helps procure medicines and vaccines as a back-up support for the provinces to meet any health emergency,” she said.

In the past, Dr Durrani pointed out, international health organisations or pharmaceuticals have come forward to fulfil needs during an emergency. “This is not a permanent solution,” she said.

“During flooding chances of an outbreak of malaria, dengue, diarrhoea, hepatitis A&E, gastroenteritis, skin/eye disease or snake-bite incidents are high and for that there is an urgent need to have medicines or vaccine in stock to deal with the situation,” she said.

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“Usually, provinces have limited funds and cannot respond to any health emergency,”she said.

When contacted NHEPRN Director General Dr Munir Ahmed Mangrio said, “The PM’s Office has allocated funds to deal with any emergency during natural disasters and the NDMA is there to facilitate them.”

However, NDMA spokesman Ahmed Kamal explained that the funds allocated by the PM’s Office are only meant to be used by NDMA for food, shelter, rescue and other relief activities. The health ministry, according to Kamal, has nothing to do with this amount.”

He claimed there are no funds at the federal level to be used for health emergencies during national disasters

Monsoon showers

The NDMA issued alerts based on the Pakistan Meteorological Department’s weather prediction for monsoon rains expected at scattered places of southern and some central parts of the country during the next three days.

According to the Met Office spokesman, monsoon currents have started to penetrate the southern parts of the country that will produce rain/thunderstorm at scattered places of Sindh, southern Punjab (DG Khan, Multan and Bahawalpur divisions), Lower K-P (DI Khan and Bannu divisions) and parts of Balochistan (Zhob, Sibbi, Naseerabad and Kalat divisions) from Thursday to Saturday. Intermittent rain is also expected in Karachi during the next three days.

Isolated heavy falls may also occur in Sindh, southern Punjab, lower K-P and Balochistan that may generate flash flooding in streams.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 5th, 2016.

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