Poor healthcare facilities

Another most important problem in Pakistan is that Healthcare facilities are miserable. This spreads across the entire spectrum of healthcare. For instance, most medicines are not only substandard, they are contaminated with fake ingredients adding to the health problems of people but given widespread poverty, most people are unable to afford proper medication. At the top end of the scale, the rich can get the most advanced medical services available anywhere in the world. The difference is price: those that can afford it can get the best service available; the rest cannot. Environmental pollution has increased alarmingly causing massive respiratory problems. In many cities, industries used to discharge chemicals outside their factories contaminating surface water. With government restrictions, industrialists now pump such chemicals into the ground polluting underground water. There has resulted in an increase in Hepatitis-C and cancer-related diseases.

Other problems relating to poor healthcare facilities in Pakistan results in followings:

1: Pakistan is one of only four countries where polio has not been eradicated (the others are Afghanistan, India, and Nigeria)

2: Water- and sanitation-related diseases are responsible for about 60 percent of child deaths.

Pakistan’s overall expenditure on improving healthcare facilities is very low. This is not because of lack of funds. Pakistan received $billion of rupees in foreign aid for health and population sectors, but the depressing factors quoted above point to a serious domestic problem. First is the culture of corruption; the ruling elites consider all foreign aid as personal property. Whatever money is given to Pakistan is used as follows: exorbitant fees for foreign “experts”, filling foreign bank accounts of Pakistani officials and the rest is sent to Pakistan but even that is not properly utilized. The legendary incompetence, inefficiency and nepotism of Pakistani officials waste it.

Recommendation:

Govt should at least invest that money in this sector which they are receiving as foreign aid.