Public health: Minister eyes millennium development goals

Government is aware of problems faced by the medical community, says Mujtaba .

LAHORE:

Minister for Excise and Taxation Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman said on Monday that the government was using all available resources for providing better healthcare facilities to people.

He said Rs121.8 billion had been approved for improving and extending health facilities. He said the government had evolved a plan of action for addressing health needs of rural populations.

Talking to a delegation of family physicians and lady health workers (LHWs) at his residence, Rehman said skilled birth attendants, and LHWs were being appointed at health centres because the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) in LHWs-covered areas was 147/100,000 live births, compared 300 to 350/100,000 in uncovered areas.

He said the under-five mortality rate currently was 94/1000 and reduced to 45 till 2015.

He said the newborn mortality rate, which was 54/1,000, would be reduced to 25 by next year.

He said the infant mortality rate was 77/1,000. It would be brought down to 40.

Rehman said maternal mortality ratio was 350-500/100,000 and would be reduced to 140 by next year.

He said 20 per cent deliveries these days were attended by skilled birth attendants.

He said effort would be made to raise the ratio.

He said the contraceptive prevalence rate was 36 per cent. It would be increased to 55 per cent by 2015.

Rehman said the government was aware of the problems faced by the medical community and was taking steps to address them as soon as possible.

He said the provincial government was focusing on primary and preventive healthcare to achieve the millennium development goals (MDGs).

He said the Health Insurance Card Scheme was being launched at a cost of Rs4 billion.

He said these cards would help income low income families get treatment at state-of-the-art public and private hospitals.

He said vocational would be provided women as well as opportunities for employment so that they could play a greater role in the socio-economic uplift of the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2014.