Orphaned by state: Soaring medical expenses and the smile of a loved one

Their child’s medical condition leaves them with no option but to seek assistance.

ISLAMABAD:

Healthcare system is one of the most neglected areas in Pakistan. In the absence of a comprehensive health insurance policy, many people have been forced to splurge their life savings in the pursuit of making a loved one healthy again.

As the government hospitals remain overcrowded and lack facilities, the need for affordable treatment remains a luxury for many in the country.

The tale of the six-year-old Muhammad Shahzeb is no different. He was operated upon when he was only five. The doctors had to perform a colostomy which has now left Shahzeb with a seven inch piece of intestine hanging outside from under his right ribcage. It is his body’s only mechanism of discharging waste at the moment.

Colostomies are a common medical procedure and had the doctors at Pakistan Institute Medical Sciences (Pims) not performed the procedure, it would have resulted in Shahzeb’s death. The doctors at the hospital promised to reverse the colostomy once the boy reached the age of seven.

Requiring constant care, the boy from Talagang remains vulnerable to infection and injury as the exposed soft intestinal tissue is susceptible to harm. The boy feels no pain, but his mother fears for him. As Bibi Parveen gently wraps the unnatural looking appendage with a soft cloth and then pins it on to his chest, she said “I fear for him all the time, I have to dedicate my whole time to him because he regularly falls ill.”

“We spend Rs700 a week on just the cloth we use to dress his wound,” added the mother.

The travel expenses, for the family that lives in Talagang, coupled with the cost of treatment have become a little too expense for the family. Father of the boy, Munir said, “I am a man of integrity and work hard to take care of my family. But Shahzeb’s condition has forced me into debt.” The person has already borrowed Rs0.2 million from his family and while he has no idea how the amount will be repaid, Munir is in need for more assistance.

The boy however, remains in good spirits. He does so, on a UNHCR donated blanket which he shares with his parents and two siblings. Pakistan Baitul Mal and Pims hospital had earlier
provided for Shahzeb’s treatment which helped in saving his life.

Munir, who works as a daily wage labourer in his native city, said that despite all his hard work, he cannot provide for his family, treatment of his son and payback the debts simultaneously. “Pims and the Baitul Mal helped in treating Shahzeb earlier and we are thankful to them. But since the public healthcare system only caters to the in-hospital treatment, there is not much that can be done except asking for help,” he said.





Published in The Express Tribune, September 24^th, 2011.