PESHAWAR: Pakistan Pediatrics Association has expressed concern over shortage of neonatologists in the country and has issued the country’s first-ever resuscitation guideline to put brakes on the mortalities of the newborns from avoidable medical issues.
This was stated by senior pediatricians at the two-day workshop started at the postgraduate medical Institute Hayatabad, Peshawar, on Saturday.
The event attended by 23 participants, all pediatricians, working in the government and private hospitals to receive training on the application of the guidelines and apply the same at their respective hospitals, a press release said.
Renowned neonatologist and former professor at Children Hospital Lahore Prof Khawaja Ahmad Irfan Waheed, who inaugurated the event, stressed the need for adopting the guidelines to ensure better management of the newborns at the hospitals.
According to him, these guidelines developed by highly-trained experts would go a long way to improve the services regarding neonates at the hospitals and prevent deaths from avoidable problems.
Attributes most deaths to preventable, manageable causes
Also in attendance were distinguished senior doctors, including the president of the Pakistan Pediatric Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Dr. Syed Bawar Shah, Prof Amin Jan Gandapur, Prof Aqeel Khan, Prof Muhammad Hussain, Prof Zahid Bakhtiar, Dr. Bilal, Dr. Khalil Rehman, Dr. Saima Ali, Dr. Samina Shams, Dr Ghazala Shams, Dr Bushra Rauf and Dr Inamullah Khan from the Unicef.
PPA’s president Dr. Syed Bawar Shah highlighted the pressing issue of neonatal mortality in Pakistan and described the situation as deplorable. According to him, the neonatal mortality stood at 39 per 1,000 live births nationwide and emphasised that the new guidelines were a significant step towards standardising and improving maternal and neonatal care across the province.
He extended his gratitude to Professor Irfan Waheed and his team for their efforts in developing the guideline and stressed the importance of its implementation throughout the province with continuous monitoring.
The neonatal mortality was a big public health issue in the country, with around 700 newborns dying daily, mostly from preventable and manageable causes and unfortunately, most of these deaths occur in rural areas, he said.
Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2025.
