Sindh Announces Plan To Expand Neonatal Care To Combat Infant Mortality

1 min read

KARACHI: Health Minister Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho has said that the Sindh government plans to extend paediatric and neonatal intensive care services as part of its efforts to tackle the high infant mortality rate in the province.

Speaking at a media briefing organised at the New Secretariat to highlight this year’s performance of the health department on December 23, she stated that a major concern for the provincial government in the health sector has been the high infant mortality rate.

These deaths, she explained, are predominantly reported in premature and malnourished babies.

“To address this critical issue, the government has established an exclusive paediatric and neonatal intensive care unit at a Korangi hospital, which is equipped with modern medical facilities and staffed by experienced professionals,” she said.

Minister says only 75pc of deliveries in Sindh currently take place in health facilities, efforts underway to further improve this statistics

She added that similar services have been initiated in Sukkur, with plans to expand them to other cities, including Jamshoro.

These facilities, she noted, will operate under the Sindh Institute of Child Health and Neonatology in Korangi.

Elaborating on the causes of newborn deaths, she identified birth asphyxia — a serious condition caused by insufficient oxygen during birth — and neonatal infections due to unsafe delivery practices as the leading factors contributing to newborn mortalities in Pakistan.

“To combat this, we are strengthening primary healthcare units and training staff. Currently, 75 percent of deliveries in Sindh take place in healthcare facilities, and we aim to further improve this status. The Peoples Primary Healthcare Initiatives, which currently provide immunisation and family planning services, will be equipped to offer delivery services as well.”

About the projects in Karachi, she said a cardiac hospital would soon be operational in Baldia Town while plans were afoot to upgrade the Sobhraj and Azizabad hospitals in collaboration with the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation.

“We have also asked the Karachi mayor to make the Spencer Eye Hospital effectively operational with the support of the health department. Unfortunately, the hospital is in poor condition right now,” she said.

The government, the minister said, planned to build medical and surgical towers at the Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) and renovate the old hospital building under a master plan.

Modern gastroenterology departments, like the one currently operational at CHK, would be set up in other districts. Also, the new paediatric unit at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases would soon be completed.

“Nursing training would be strengthened through a master’s degree programme. There would also be English language and computer literacy and technical programmes for the medical staff that would not only help them improve their skills but also open up better employment opportunities. We also want to introduce a degree programme for the paramedical staff that currently pursue a certificate course,” she said.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2024

Previous Story

UN Rapporteurs Alarmed By Attacks On Girls’ Schools

Next Story

Call To Link Girls’ Minimum Age Of Marriage To CNICs

Latest from Blog

Moot Urges Child-focused Climate Action

KARACHI: Youth took centre stage at the Youth Convention: Climate Change and Role of Youth, where Obun2, in partnership with Terre des Hommes and civil society allies, unveiled its landmark report “The Impact of Climate Change on Children in Pakistan.” The two-day convention, held at Beach Luxury Hotel, brought together…

Schools Violating Vacation Orders Penalised

SWABI: Complaints pouring in from different circles have forced the officials of the district administration to take action against schools who failed to comply with the provincial government’s order of summer holidays. The provincial education department has closed both public and private sector schools for summer holidays on June 15,…

Three Booked For Rape Of Ninth-grader

SAHIWAL: Police have registered a case against three suspects and arrested two of them for allegedly molesting and blackmailing a 15-year-old ninth-grade student through a mobile phone video in the official quarters of the irrigation department in Neeli Bar Canal Colony. Reports said ‘S’ of Sarwar Shaheed Road, Civil Lines,…

Three Pakistani Schools Among Top 10 Finalists For World’s Best School Prizes

ISLAMABAD: Three Pakistani schools have been named among the Top 10 finalists for the World’s Best School Prizes 2025. The prizes, launched by T4 Education in 2022 following the COVID-19 pandemic, aim to highlight innovative practices in schools that are transforming lives both inside and outside the classroom, according to…

Three Missing Hindu Girls Recovered From Karachi

Three underage Hindu girls who had mysteriously gone missing from Shahdadpur recently have been recovered from Karachi. Officials said on Thursday that Dr Lal Chand Ukrani, special assistant to the chief minister of Sindh on minority affairs, had taken serious notice of the incident and directed law enforcement agencies to…
Go toTop