The healthcare challenge

When a poor family is given a choice to spend on either bread or healthcare, they will always choose bread.

Such are the conditions in which the urban slum communities reside. With the huge economic burden in their lives and the lack of access to quality primary healthcare, these underprivileged communities mostly ignore their illness until there is a need for hospitalization.

Pakistan has one of the highest infant mortality rates and lowest life expectancies when compared to even smaller neighbours like Bangladesh and Nepal. Karachi, being the largest city, bears a large brunt of the problem. Government hospitals are run beyond capacity, with both Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center and Civil Hospital Karachi treating more than 1500 patients every day in their emergency departments.

The private hospitals face a similar crisis. According to data from one of the largest private healthcare institutions in Karachi, the number of patients they treated in 2018 was 410,000. More alarming is the fact that 70 percent of these patients belonged to impoverished and low-income families. Tough financial conditions make it considerably hard for people to seek quality medical care for themselves and their loved ones.

The situation is quite precarious, with mostly underprivileged patients suffering as a result. Providing basic health facilities is a fundamental human right. However, in Pakistan, less than one percent of GDP is spent on medical services to the people. Karachi, with a population of almost 15 million, has only five government-run hospitals. In times like these, patients have to rely on healthcare institutions run by private entities and other non-profit organizations (NGO).

NGOs like Edhi, Chhippa, Tabba Foundation and SINA operate clinics which are carefully placed in areas where they are needed the most. People turn to these organizations because they make sure that the quality of services provided at clinics are of international level and a protocol based system is used to diagnose and treat a patient.

Taking into account the patient’s current condition, past medical history and records, and necessary diagnostic tests performed at the clinic, they are provided with optimal healthcare. All these services provide a variety of treatments under one roof and complete care is given to patients who do not need to go to different places for a doctor consultation, tests, and medicines.

One of the major challenges faced by the trust today is the fact that the world’s third largest city, Karachi, cannot be served by just a few clinics run by organizations like SINA and alike. The need is much greater. To reach a significant amount of the population, it is important to spread the word about the issues and hope for people’s support in terms of Zakat and donations.

The main barrier that organizations providing quality medical services face is that normally in Pakistan, people don’t understand the concept of primary and tertiary healthcare units. If a disease can be diagnosed and treated at the primary healthcare stage, then a lot of money can be saved which is eventually spent on treatment in hospitals. A little amount spent as a charity to enable quality primary healthcare setups will save huge amounts of in-hospital treatments.

The model on which these organizations are based is to save patients from critical illnesses and alleviate the disease burden from hospitals and eventually the society. These trusts also work with women to create awareness to educate them about better care for their families and themselves, educating and treating disease at the grassroots levels.

Alleviation of the current state of the healthcare situation in Pakistan, and specifically Karachi, requires extensive efforts across the board from both government and private organizations. Collective attempts in this sector are the only way to help the underserved segment get access to a right that is promised at birth to every individual.

The writer is a communication specialist.