Sick state of healthcare
Health and education are important for any nation but in Pakistan, the situation in these sectors is dismal
Health and education are considered the two most significant aspects of a nation’s life — at least theoretically. Unfortunately, in Pakistan and most developing countries, we find the situation in these sectors dismal. In rural areas of the country, it is dismalest.
PM’s Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza pulled no punches in telling the whole truth about the sick state of Pakistan’s healthcare sector while speaking at a seminar the other day in Islamabad. “Pakistan’s healthcare sector suffers from disease-oriented policies,” though a healthcare system, as the name itself suggests, should have health-oriented policies. He lamented that the healthcare system had become a source of infection, especially when it comes to blood-borne diseases. He said the sector suffers from lack of funding together with disease-oriented policies.
While noting that “people are infected at hospitals and clinics because of unhygienic conditions, the reuse of syringes and other (forms) of negligence”, Dr Mirza said his ministry had started reforms and hopefully positive results would be seen within a year. He lamented that the per capita funding in Pakistan’s healthcare sector was the lowest in the Eastern Mediterranean region comprising 22 countries. He said in Pakistan a mere 0.9 per cent of GDP was spent on health. He said in government hospitals, touts of private hospitals try to take in wealthy patients for their clients. It is similar to the situation at railway and bus stations where hotel touts lure passengers to take accommodation at their client hotels. He said such practices were against the ethics of the noble profession of healing.
Dr Mirza disclosed that 70 per cent of healthcare is provided by the private sector, and he claimed that some private hospitals and clinics indulged in tax evasion. He said there should be universal health coverage to address the issue of healthcare. Everyone should have a health card for free treatment. He stressed the need for a reduction in birth rate proportionate to the cut in death rate. He sounded an alarm bell that if the present trend continued, Pakistan’s population in 2030 would be larger than the population of the US, Russia, Brazil and Indonesia.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 25th, 2019.
PM’s Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza pulled no punches in telling the whole truth about the sick state of Pakistan’s healthcare sector while speaking at a seminar the other day in Islamabad. “Pakistan’s healthcare sector suffers from disease-oriented policies,” though a healthcare system, as the name itself suggests, should have health-oriented policies. He lamented that the healthcare system had become a source of infection, especially when it comes to blood-borne diseases. He said the sector suffers from lack of funding together with disease-oriented policies.
While noting that “people are infected at hospitals and clinics because of unhygienic conditions, the reuse of syringes and other (forms) of negligence”, Dr Mirza said his ministry had started reforms and hopefully positive results would be seen within a year. He lamented that the per capita funding in Pakistan’s healthcare sector was the lowest in the Eastern Mediterranean region comprising 22 countries. He said in Pakistan a mere 0.9 per cent of GDP was spent on health. He said in government hospitals, touts of private hospitals try to take in wealthy patients for their clients. It is similar to the situation at railway and bus stations where hotel touts lure passengers to take accommodation at their client hotels. He said such practices were against the ethics of the noble profession of healing.
Dr Mirza disclosed that 70 per cent of healthcare is provided by the private sector, and he claimed that some private hospitals and clinics indulged in tax evasion. He said there should be universal health coverage to address the issue of healthcare. Everyone should have a health card for free treatment. He stressed the need for a reduction in birth rate proportionate to the cut in death rate. He sounded an alarm bell that if the present trend continued, Pakistan’s population in 2030 would be larger than the population of the US, Russia, Brazil and Indonesia.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 25th, 2019.