New OPD complex in Karachi, a 'necessary ingredient for sustainable development'

"The Sindh govt believes affordable, quality healthcare is the fundamental right of citizens" says Murad Shah

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that his government firmly believes that affordable, high-quality health care is a fundamental privilege of every citizen. 
“It is not only ethically and socially imperative, but also a necessary ingredient for the sustainable long-term development of our economies and society.”

This he said on Tuesday while addressing a program organised to celebrate 75 liver transplants by Dow University of Health Sciences at their Ojha campus. Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was the chief guest on the occasion and Minister Labour Saeed Ghani, Parliamentary Secretary of health Qasim Soomro, and Secretary Health Zulfiqar Shah attended the programme.  

Mr. Shah said that it is a privilege to stand before our healthcare workers who have worked industriously to provide quality healthcare. He congratulated Dow University of Health Sciences for launching liver transplant services for the people of Sindh. 

Murad Ali Shah said that the healthcare system's foremost challenge was providing adequate health coverage and equal access to medical services for all. “When citizens have to pay out of their pockets, they may delay or relinquish necessary treatments and risk becoming impoverished, especially by chronic diseases which require long-term care,” he observed.  

Mr. Shah said that liver disease was one of our country's leading causes of death, and liver transplantation was the only lifesaving treatment option. “Considering the social strata, many patients cannot afford liver transplants due to financial constraints and, eventually, pass away,” he deplored and went on to say the allocation of funds by his government has paved the way for the development of liver transplant programs in the province. 

The chief minister recalled that the Gambat Institute of Health Sciences has successfully performed 500 liver transplants free of cost which is a big success of his government’s services in healthcare.  

Mr. Shah urged the private sector and the philanthropists to come over and not only donate for liver transplantation but own a patient(s) so that they could be looked after in the post-translation scenario.