Medics in emergency rooms of government hospitals have treated over 3,000 children in Karachi amid torrential rain crises.
The recent spell of heavy monsoon rains brought significant challenges in the port city. These include urban flooding, traffic disruptions, power outages, and interruptions to daily life.
Despite these hardships, the port-city showed remarkable resilience, reports say. “Many individuals and institutions came forward to support communities and maintain essential services.”
The uninterrupted functioning of Children’s Emergency Rooms (ERs) describes the success story. These facilities remain fully operational through a strong public–private partnership model. “Even as large parts of the city were submerged, ChildLife managed ERs in six public hospitals across Karachi.” They continued to provide free, round-the-clock emergency care to children.
In the past three days, it treated over 3,000 children across these facilities. Report mentioned a notable surge in cases of gastroenteritis, illnesses. These sickness, it stated, directly linked to contaminated water and unhygienic conditions following the flooding.
Despite the overwhelming patient load and significant logistical challenges, the dedicated clinical teams remained steadfast. It shows silver lining during the urban flooding crisis.
Dr. Ahson Rabbani, CEO of ChildLife Foundation, stated, “In times when the city is paralysed, our duty is to ensure that no child is left unattended. We honour our ER team across Karachi who have remained steadfast as frontline heroes and ensured that every child receives the emergency care they need.”
In partnership with the Sindh government, ChildLife manages ten pediatric Emergency Rooms in tertiary care hospitals. Its integrated telemedicine network has enabled emergency care access to children across all tehsils of the province, ensuring that no child is more than 30 minutes away from quality emergency care.
ChildLife Foundation currently provides life-saving treatment to over two million children annually across Pakistan, 24/7 and completely free of charge. The organisation has played a pivotal role in expanding and modernising emergency care for children across the country.
