Plan to cut pneumonia, diarrhoea related deaths

LAHORE

Health Services Punjab  Director General Dr Mukhtar Hussain Syed chaired the Provincial Child Survival Group meeting to review the strategies for reduction of child mortality rate related to pneumonia and diarrhea.

According to a press release issued here on Wednesday, UNICEF representative Dr Mushtaq Rana said a new project was being introduced in Punjab with the financial support of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on childhood pneumonia and diarrohea.

Besides the provincial representative of international development agencies UNICEF, World Health Organisation, Gates Foundations, World Food Program and UNFPA, the officials of Policy and Strategic Planning Unit, IRMNCH, Pakistan Paediatric Association and EPI Programme representatives attended the meeting.

The UNICEF representative said that in the children under five years of age, pneumonia and diarrhea were major killers out of all causes of child mortality in Punjab.

He said the incidence of pneumonia and diarrhea was reported to be highest in the post neonatal age group.

UNICEF experts said that the child mortality rate could be reduced by implementing the recommendations of Integrated Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Pneumonia and Diarrhea (GAPPD) which provided an integrated framework of key interventions – proven globally to effectively prevent and treat childhood pneumonia and diarrhea.

The UNICEF representative gave update to the health DG on the nature of projects the UNICEF was implementing. He highlighted the cross-sectoral programme approach that involved nutrition, WASH, HIV/AIDS, Health and Education with focus on front-line delivery for vulnerable populations.

The Health DG formed a five-member core group from among the key stakeholders comprising representatives of Policy and Strategic Planning Unit, IRMNCH Program WHO, UNICEF and Pakistan Paediatrics Association that will hold regular meetings under the leadership of the Punjab government and oversight of Child Survival Group. 

 The WHO representative gave an overview of the mandate of WHO, and the support it has been providing to the provincial government in preventive, curative and overarching programmes.