Present regime and dengue!

I hung up the phone again and texted him that I was busy with the meeting, finished and called back. As soon as I read this message, this friend of mine sent me a reply message that Imran Bhai is an emergency, so contact me immediately. As soon as I read this message, I called this friend and he almost cried and told me that my sister is very ill, her platelets are very low due to dengue and the doctors have said that if you take her life If you want to save, take the patient to a good hospital in Lahore immediately. Brother Imran! Do something for God's sake, or my sister will die. We have made every effort for ourselves. There is no bed in any government or private hospital. Help us for God's sake.

I comforted him on my own and said: "You hang up. I'll do something." As soon as I hung up, I called a very close friend of mine, a doctor who is the CEO of a well-known private hospital in Lahore, and stated my case. Expressing his helplessness, Dr Sahib said to me, "Imran bhai, you are well aware that if I have the capacity for one bed, I should be present, but what can I do?" There is no room available and no bed in the ICU. All the hospitals are full of dengue patients. After hearing this denial, I contacted the owner of another well-known hospital in Lahore, located in front of Gaddafi Stadium on Ferozepur Road, through another friend, but got a similar response from there. On the other hand, my friend was constantly crying and calling me to do something for the sake of God.

With every call of his phone, not only my responsibility was increasing but also my embarrassment was constantly increasing. It was increasingly why I could not help him in this troubled world. In the midst of this predicament, I contacted another friend of mine, a doctor who also owns a large private hospital in Lahore, and asked him for some special compassion and help in this whole situation. He was especially kind and told me that there was no room or ICU bed available but that I could do something to alleviate the anxiety of you and your friend in the side room next to the ICU. This patient is admitted and his treatment is started immediately. I especially thanked the doctor and told my friend to take his sister to the hospital immediately.

After going through all this process, I was forced to think why we Pakistanis are deprived of even basic facilities for treatment in case of any disease? Under the Constitution of Pakistan, when it is the responsibility of the government to provide health and medical care to every Pakistani, then why do we have to stumble, be humiliated and seek recommendations for treatment. Don't ask the poor, even though they have money and resources, they have to beg for treatment in private hospitals. Room rent in most private hospitals is higher than in five star hotels, but the people who are willing to spend that much money still don't get the facilities. The poor die wandering around in government hospitals seeking treatment, but no one cares.

According to the World Health Organization, Pakistan spends only 1.2% of its GDP on health, while the WHO suggests Pakistan should spend 5% of GDP on health. When Prime Minister Imran Khan was in opposition, he was openly critical of the lack of health facilities and government policies. He also claimed that after the formation of the PTI government, revolutionary steps would be taken in the field of healthcare in the country, especially at government hospitals where all the medical facilities would be available to the common man. Has this happened? If you ask the truth, the answer is no.

Per official figures released in May 2020, Rs90.1 billion were spent on the health of 111.12 million people in Punjab, the country's largest province. That is Rs818.99 per annum and Rs 68.25 per month were spent for the health of an individual. The Sindh province, which came second in terms of population, spent Rs62.5 billion on the health of its 47.8 million citizens, i.e. Rs1,305 per citizen per year and Rs108.76 per month per month. Balochistan has a population of 12.3 million and has a health budget of Rs15.2 billion, i.e. Rs1,231.32 per citizen per year and Rs102.61 per month. In 2018-19, FATA was not integrated into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa due to which KP had set aside Rs23.5 billion for its population of 35.23 million. Thus, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa spent Rs769.90 per person per year and Rs64.15 per month.

Speaking of Islamabad, the federation spent Rs12.4 billion in the health sector last financial year, which was for the citizens of the federal capital as well as for the areas under its jurisdiction. After Corona, dengue has raised more questions about the government performance. The PML-N has sharply criticized the government in this regard. Opposition leader in Punjab Hamza Shehbaz has even said the Punjab government is responsible for the spread of dengue in Punjab, which was pointed out by a report of the health department itself. This year's dengue campaign was ordered at a time when deaths were on the rise.

Whether the people trust the government or the opposition, the truth is that every Pakistani has a constitutional and fundamental right to access appropriate treatment.