Health plight of communities
As 2024 almost draws to a close, it’s time to assess the year’s progress in healthcare and socio-economic development. Despite satisfactory advancements in various health sectors, the country’s inadequate efforts to protect its most vulnerable citizens – children and infants – have overshadowed these achievements. The year has also seen alarming spikes in infectious diseases like polio and HIV, despite ongoing efforts to combat them. Authorities are expected to set new strategies and targets for the upcoming year, particularly in the health sector, where room for improvement remains open. Official reports indicate a disturbing upward trend in polio virus detection since mid-2023. As of December 24, Pakistan reported 65 new paralytic polio (WPV1) cases in the outgoing year, compared to six in 2023, with approximately 500 polio-positive environmental samples in 2024, up from 126 in 2023. New cases have been reported primarily from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (18), Sindh (18), Balochistan (27)...