Shaping 21st Century Public Health In Pakistan

Shaping 21st Century Public Health in Pakistan

July 2020

This working paper is a collaborative effort representing views from Tabadlab and across EHI Practices.

There are six core health system components that require targeted investment, along with a strategic reorganization of healthcare delivery and elevation of preventative and promotive healthcare strategies.

Pakistan’s health system has struggled to effectively and efficiently serve the needs of a growing population. Chronic challenges include prioritization, regulation, institutional alignment, and governance. They have combined to produce major gaps in service delivery. Structural shifts in Pakistan’s demographic and disease profile are indicative of the urgent need to reform and reorient healthcare in the country. The Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the wider public health ecosystem, the economy, lives, livelihoods, and wellbeing of people and communities across the country only reinforces the need for a strong and resilient public health system; one that provides affordable high-quality healthcare and delivers effective crisis management. 

In view of Pakistan’s international commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and a continually lagging performance in nutrition, infectious diseases, and preventive healthcare, a national focus on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) offers a unique opportunity at the turn of the decade. This paper examines Pakistan’s healthcare system and the emerging health requirements and deficiencies. This analysis is followed by an overview of UHC and its relevance as a framework to improve the country’s healthcare system. The paper then discusses Pakistan’s progress towards UHC and concludes with a transformation roadmap for an improved and effective 21st-century healthcare system that can serve Pakistanis.