90 children die of pneumonia in January

Lack of facilities and shortage of beds in hospital is major cause of infant mortality

PESHAWAR: Pakistan is among one of the countries of the world where pneumonia is one of the major causes of infant mortality and Kyhber-Puktunkhwa (K-P) province has become more prone to the disease as only in the month of January this year, over 90 deaths were reported across K-P alone.

Sixteen per cent of infant deaths in the province is attributed to pneumonia informed sources declared

Speaking to Daily Express sources disclosed that in Lady Reading Hospital 306 infants were brought in afflicted with pneumonia, of which 63 died, while in Khyber Teaching Hospital 282 kids were admitted of which 17 lost their lives.

Similarly in Hayatabad Medical Complex Peshawar, 145 children suffering from Pneumonia were admitted in which ten deaths were reported.



Sources in the health department said that, another reason infant mortality is so high in K-P is due to scarcity of beds in the three major hospitals.

In a paediatric ward four infants are placed on one bed which sometimes reaches to five, as a result of which complications arise and death ratio is higher as compared to the rest of the world.

Due to the fragile health condition of infants, the disease becomes easily communicable in infants, which also affects other infants in the wards.

The issue of shortage of beds has been brought to the attention of the authorities concerned, however, nothing has been done to improve the situation.

“The government claims to have established pediatric departments at hospitals at the DHQ level and provided resources for it but the fact of the matter is that all DHQ hospitals don’t have sufficient funds, nor have they constructed or provided funds for a children hospital” the source said.

The three major hospitals which specialise in child related diseases like Bashir Bilour Memorial Hospital, “Khyber institute of infectios diseases, Mardan Benazir Children Hospital and Charsadda Maternity and Children Hospital which were constructed in last government tenure are still facing lingering issues of funds and till now, still they are not fully functional, the source said.

Due to the incomplete health facilities at three districts in the province the three main hospital of the provincial capital are overwhelmed with infants which also leads to the dearth of those lesser facilities at the hospital, the source said.

The sources also said that only in Lady Reading Hospital alone over 800 infants were facilitated last month in the 24-hour emergency service while the whole strength of the hospital is 24 beds only for emergency, while no ventilators are available across the hospital of the K-P.

Sources also said that we have limited specialists in infant disease, while few areas we have zero specialties in kid diseases.

While commenting on the issues a child specialist Prof Dr Afzal Khattak said that due to inclement weather between November and March the health of infants were badly affected. The major symptoms of the pneumonia in less the five years old kids are severe fever, breathing problems, and shortness in breathing; discoloring of the kids in most cases, while pain at the ribs also symptomatic of it, Khattak said.

Parents should admit the child immediately if such symptoms are available and warned parents that it is communicable disease as the bacteria is easily transferred from kid to another.

He urged parents to immunise their children and have them vaccinated the age one.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 3^rd, 2019.