Indus Vitals

KARACHI: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has expressed concerns that significant funding cuts to aid programmes may undermine the progress made in reducing child mortality worldwide. Despite a decline in child deaths globally, with 4.8 million deaths reported in 2023, the organisation warns that reduced funding for life-saving programmes is causing healthcare worker shortages, clinic closures, and disruptions to vaccination programmes. According to the United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME), the number of child deaths has dropped by more than half since 2000, and stillbirths have declined by over a third. However, the reports also highlight that progress has slowed, and too many children are still being lost to preventable causes. "In 2022, the world reached a historic milestone when child deaths dropped slightly below 5 million for the first time," the reports noted. However, the Inter-agency Group warned that global funding cuts c...

IV Report KARACHI: Pakistan observed World TB Day on March 24, amidst growing concerns over the country's alarming tuberculosis burden. Despite being the fifth-highest TB-burden country globally, Pakistan lacks indigenous data to inform policy decisions and track progress. According to experts, locally prepared TB data is crucial for understanding the disease's epidemiology, trends, and burden. This data enables policymakers and healthcare professionals to make informed decisions about TB control strategies, resource allocation, and programme implementation. This scribe approached the Sindh health media coordinator for a yearly update and district-wise data on TB prevalence rates in Sindh, but did not receive any information. The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) sounded the alarm on the nation's TB burden, citing the World Health Organisation's (WHO) TB report for 2024. To combat the growing TB crisis, the PMA emphasised the need for: - Prioritised Research: F...

Photo courtesy: SMBBIT  Owing to poor road network and unregulated road traffic, the metropolitan city of Karachi used to witness road accidents almost on daily basis but this February came as a horrible month in terms of string of accidents that occurred due to rash driving of heavy vehicles in the city. Dumper trucks, water or fuel supply tankers and trailers played havoc with the lives of the city dwellers, causing numerous deaths and multiple injuries to many others. Karachi experienced a surge in traffic accidents this month, particularly involving heavy vehicles, resulting in deaths and injuries followed by grief and anger and resulting in torching of vehicles involved in the accidents. Though the culprit drivers were reportedly arrested, such incidents didn’t stop to occur. As many as 14 people including two women and five children reportedly lost their lives in such road accidents only in the first week of February. As per reports, a dumper truck ran over pedestrians on...

Mak Archives, courtesy: Daily Dawn, Karachi (2012) In one of the panel discussions held as a part of a global conference at a private degree awarding institute of Karachi, recently, the panelists explicitly highlighted the challenges of raising teens in the rapidly evolving digital landscape, suggesting for creating an accelerated awareness among parents, children and their teachers about the risk of premature or prolonged exposure of children to smartphones or tablets. They feared that the screen addiction may lead the teenagers towards a situation which might render them socially unfit or make them undermined souls. This was in addition to what the leading physicians have been warning about the negative health impacts of excessive use of mobile phones on humans, particularly in terms of the reported electromagnetic radiation emitting from mobile phones and related digital equipment.     How much to use digital devices is a forewarned issue in other parts of the worl...

Admissions increase by 15% in 2024, with 71 suicidal and homicidal burn cases reported in two years. KARACHI: The 66-bed Burns Centre at Dr Ruth K M Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) admitted a total of 1,170 burn victims, including acid, suicidal, homicidal and electrical burns cases, in 2024, registering a 15% increase, compared to its overall admissions in 2023. According to the Burns Centre –the only comprehensive burns care facility in the public sector in Sindh—it treated and discharged 573 (49%) burns patients, while 412 (35%) expired and 166 (14%) left the hospital against the expressed medical advices. The CHK centre, which is run in collaboration with an NGO (Friends of Burns Centre), witnessed 32 suicidal attempt (self-burning), and 16 homicidal (reportedly burnt by others) cases in 2024, against 39 suicidal and 23 homicidal cases brought there in 2023. Overall, the burns-specific hospital admitted 71 patients, including 22 women, suicidal burn cases, and 39, including...

    Need stressed for setting up more specialised infectious disease facilities in public health sector By Mukhtar Alam KARACHI: The Sindh Infectious Disease Hospital and Research Centre (SIDH&RC) in Karachi reported a 6% increase in patient admissions in 2024, registering 7,645 cases from all major infection categories, compared to 2023 figures of inpatients. This rise is particularly alarming given the increased threat of tuberculosis (14% among adults) and measles (32% among children). According to the SIDH’s annual data shared with Social Track , the 173-bed hospital admitted 5,252 adults and 2,393 children in 2024, up from 4,923 adults and 2,296 children in 2023. The hospital also saw a significant increase in outpatient visits, with 38,189 adults and children attending clinics in 2024, a 33% rise from 2023, which, as per doctors, reflects on considerable prevalence of infectious diseases that are grouped like viral, bacterial, parasitic, fungal, transmissib...

By Muhammad Kazim Jafri Regional disparities in socioeconomic progress are a stark reality in unequal-income countries, despite frequent assessments of overall progress. While some areas struggle with stagnation, unemployment, and inadequate infrastructure, others thrive with vibrant industries and high incomes. This disparity poses significant challenges for policymakers and socioeconomic planners, who must balance competing needs and priorities. Reliable data is the foundation of informed planning and policy development. Academia and policymakers rely heavily on governmental and nongovernmental statistics to devise policies, launch developmental projects, and make informed decisions at national and provincial levels. Socioeconomic surveys and reports provide critical insights into inequality, enabling planners to prioritise their efforts. Taking Sindh as a case in point, a closer examination of provincial socioeconomic indicators reveals a more nuanced picture. While Sindh is often...

By Mukhtar Alam KARACHI: A 36-year-old housewife living in District East Karachi became the first victim of Naegleria fowleri in 2025, succumbing to the brain-eating amoeba at a private hospital on February 23. The case has raised concerns over the deteriorated drinking water quality in the megapolis, particularly during the moderately cold temperatures. According to health authorities, the woman, a resident of Gulshan-i-Iqbal, developed primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) after using tap water for ablution (wuzu) five times a day. She suffered from fever, headache, vomiting, and altered consciousness for six days before passing away. A preliminary inspection report revealed that the woman was pregnant. Initially, she developed a fever and took paracetamol. Her hospital declared her a lab-confirmed Naegleria fowleri case a day after her death. The initial investigators found that the patient had not participated in any water-related activities, which are typically considered the...