Pakistan: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa faces shortage of health professionals

INTERNATIONAL DESK: More than 250 posts of doctors and nurses have been lying vacant in the medical centres of Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa obstructing basic healthcare to patients.

During a briefing to the deputy commissioner Fazal Akbar on Tuesday, health department officials informed about the gruesome situation and said 60 posts for doctors and 25 posts for nurses had been lying vacant in the District Headquarters Hospital, affecting the healthcare system badly, reported Dawn.

“The tehsil hospitals, rural health centres and basic health units are understaffed as a total 121 posts of doctors and 63 posts of charge-nurse are lying vacant there,” the officials claimed, adding that the hostels of paramedics and nurses were non-functional due to improper maintenance.

The deputy commissioner released immediate orders for the health authorities to prepare a PC-I for repair of the paramedics and nursing hostels without delay and also assured release of funds for the renovation of hostels and filling the vacancies.

The administration would also ensure the installation of incinerators in hospitals, he said.

According to Dawn, the deputy commissioner chaired a meeting at his office to finalise a strategy to cover polio refusal cases and said the availability of computerised tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and blood bank would be taken care of in the DHQ hospital to avoid travelling of residents to big cities to avail of these facilities.

Additional deputy commissioner Tariqullah, district Khateeb Maulana Abdul Wahab, and officials of health and partner organisations marked their presence during the briefing alongside district health officer, Dr Abdugul.

Pakistan is one of the two countries, together with neighbouring Afghanistan, where polio is still endemic.

Pakistani Taliban have long been the country’s most prominent resistance to the polio vaccination drive.

Interestingly, in many cases, the family members show reluctance towards vaccination. Such discernments are prevalent in certain areas of the tribal regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Parents refuse to immunize their children due to a lack of awareness, doubts regarding vaccine quality, misunderstandings related to vaccination, and low confidence in vaccinators. They believe that it will harm or sterilize their children.

As the attacks on polio workers, doctors, and security forces intensify, Pakistan is falling into the cruel grip of the polio virus. The year 2012 marked the commencement of a series of violent attacks against polio workers across Pakistan, beginning in July 2012 and continuing until today.

The victims of these attacks include frontline workers, international consultants, program staff, and even police officers providing security. Polio transmission is highly active in certain core districts of Pakistan, including Peshawar (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Karachi (Sindh), and the Quetta block in Balochistan. (ANI)