Shareefan receives medical treatment at her doorstep for the first time

Months after monsoon rains hit Pakistan’s Sindh province, sending flood waters hurtling through villages and destroying homes, pools of water still remain on the ground and evidence of suffering is widespread.

Mothers like Shareefan, who has ten children, have been struggling against sickness and disease amidst very difficult living conditions.

She felt weak and had pains all over her body. “Shareefan is not unlike many women in rural Pakistan,” Dr. Mariam says. “She suffers from a lack of protein in her diet, is poorly nourished in general and routinely sick from a dirty water supply”.

Malik Yasir Awan, the landlord of Baki Khan Union Council explains, “The government dispensary and hospital are located 15 and 30km away....It has been about four months since the flood came in our area but you will still find flood water in so many areas”. Winter, he says, has further exacerbated the situation and the number of diseases reported has increased.

Shareefan would normally have to travel one or two hours to get medical treatment and lack of resources often meant her and her family members had to just cope with illness as best they could.

But this time, one of four World Vision primary health care teams was available to see Shareefan and give her the care and treatment she needed.

“What else would I ask from God that I am receiving such great medical attention at my doorstep otherwise I have to travel for an hour or two to get the treatment,’’ says Shareefan.

Her sons; Altaf, 8, and Amir, 10 had both been suffering from fever and skin infections and were also treated by medical staff from World Vision.

“I have not got such a kind consultation from the doctors sitting in the government dispensary and it is also a matter of concern that the dispensary is very far from our village; furthermore the medicines are usually not available in the dispensary,” she explains.

Her story is all too common across Sindh and Pakistan in general. There are not enough medical centres to accommodate the number of residents in each village. Often people have to travel by car to reach the centre but not every family has access to a car or can pay for transportation.

In response to the flooding and a general lack of awareness about primary health care, World Vision’s health teams are prioritising preventive services and sharing information about hygiene, sanitation and nutrition in affected areas of Khairpur district in Sindh.

“Our teams treat disease as well as provide information to the affected population on how to prevent outbreaks,” said Dr. Mariam. “Proper hygiene such as washing hands before eating is the key to prevention.”

Acute respiratory tract infection, malaria, diarrhea and skin infections among women and children remain the most commonly treated diseases among flood victims in Pakistan, but Dr. Mariam says other health issues could easily arise.

“Our mobile teams have health educators, who provide education sessions on the benefits of following appropriate hygiene practices. This is not only about preventing common diseases but also following good health practices in general”, explains Dr. Mariam.

Primary Health Care staff are seeing about 150 patients per day on average. The Primary Health Care team visits the villages every five days for follow-up. A total of 14,730 new curative consultations have been reported so far - out of these 4,515 were consultations with children.

“I am quite relaxed to see World Vision mobile team visiting my village on a regular basis and the way the doctor and other staff treats us is just amazing,” says Shareefan.

The four health care teams are currently working in Naro, Thari Mir Wah and Faiz Ganj in Khairpur district with a focus on preventative health care so that all children here enjoy good health.

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