Moot emphasises healthcare rights

Bilal Azhar Kayani stated that the health is most fundamental constitutional right of every citizen of the country.

ISLAMABAD:

Speaking at a seminar organised by Handicap in joint cooperation with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and others, Bilal Azhar Kayani, Member of the National Assembly (MNA) and convener of the Parliamentary Task Force on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), stated that the health is most fundamental constitutional right of every citizen of the country.

"Over Rs1.2 trillion have been allocated to launch various development schemes only in one province, Punjab," he said, reporting the government's efforts towards healthcare.

National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) CEO, Dr Rashid Bajwa, highlighted the importance of health projects. He emphasised the critical importance of post-referral care for individuals requiring rehabilitation and highlighted the necessity of collaboration to train caregivers and community-based organisations (CBOs), to ensure that patients receive continuous and effective care following their initial referrals and post discharge.

During the course of the roundtable discussion, the speakers underlined the project Learning, Acting and Building for Rehabilitation in Health Systems (ReLAB-HS) project. They discussed the strategic approaches for sustainable integration of rehabilitation into the national healthcare framework.

Echoing the theme of collective actions and efforts, Senior Advisor of ReLAB-HS, Dr Abdul Ghaffar, and a faculty at Johns Hopkins University, noted, "Together, we can work towards achieving better health outcomes by making efficient use of resources and ensuring that quality care is accessible even within a constrained budget."

While highlighting the efforts of the federal and provincial government, the advisor to Health, Dr Safi Malik, mentioned that the government is working on National Health Vision 2030 in which rehabilitation has been incorporated as part of policy.

While delivering the conclusive remarks, the Health Advisor to Chief Minister Punjab, Dr Azhar Mahmood Kayani emphasised the importance of integrating rehabilitation services across all levels of the healthcare system and called for stronger policy measures to ensure these services are accessible and equitable.