Healthcare woes

The lack of healthcare facilities is arguably one of the most serious challenges that our country has to deal with. Government hospitals across Pakistan are in urgent need of a radical overhaul. There are so many hospitals where there is an acute shortage of beds. As a result, patients are denied admission. While this problem doesn’t affect well-to-do families who can afford medical treatment at private hospitals, the poor are worst affected by this problem.

The severity of the situation can be gauged from the fact that in public hospitals, there is only one doctor available for 1,834 patients and only one bed for 1,403 persons. The higher authorities should take notice of this issue. The annual budget for the healthcare sector should be increased so that the healthcare department can take effective action to uplift the quality of healthcare at public hospitals.

Shamshad Ayub

Karachi