Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that his government firmly believes that affordable and high-quality healthcare is a fundamental right of every citizen.
"It is not only ethically and socially imperative but also a necessary ingredient for the sustainable long-term development of our economies and society."
This he said on Tuesday while addressing at a ceremony organised to celebrate 75 liver transplants by Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) at their Ojha campus.
PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was the chief guest on the occasion. Sindh Labour Minister, Saeed Ghani, Parliamentary Secretary of Health, Qasim Soomro, and Secretary Health, Zulfiqar Shah were also present.
Shah said that it is a privilege to stand before our healthcare workers who have worked industriously to provide quality healthcare to people. He congratulated Dow University of Health Sciences for launching liver transplant services for the people of the province.
The CM said that the healthcare system's foremost challenge was providing adequate health coverage and equal access to medical services for all. "When citizens have to pay out of their pockets, they may delay or relinquish necessary treatments and risk becoming impoverished, especially by chronic diseases which require long-term care," he observed.
Shah said that liver disease was one of leading causes of deaths in the country, and liver transplantation was the only lifesaving treatment option. "Considering the social strata, many patients cannot afford liver transplants due to financial constraints and, eventually, pass away," he deplored and went on to say that allocation of funds by his government has paved the way for the development of liver transplant programmes in the province.
He urged the private sector and the philanthropists to come up and not only donate for liver transplantation but own patients so that they could be looked after in the post-transplantation scenario.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari speaking on the occasion extended congratulations and best wishes to Dow University of Health Sciences on celebrating the successful establishment of liver transplant services in the city.
He said that we can strengthen our healthcare system and improve the delivery of healthcare through joint efforts. Earlier, PPP chairman inaugurated a new OPD Complex comprising four blocks constructed at a cost of Rs500 million. He also performed the groundbreaking ceremony of the Oncology Unit Foundation and planted a tree.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 16th, 2022.
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