Community health services in Swat Valley (KP), Pakistan

26 September 2010
UNICEF supports community-based health services in
Pakistan's Swat Valley

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The deceptively scenic Swat valley in north western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan is facing a complex emergency situation. Since May 2009 military operations, insurgency and conflict have ravaged the area. And in July
floodwaters came, bringing yet more devastation and affecting nearly half the population.

The impact on the health and nutritional status of families has been severe, especially for women and children. Access is difficult with damage to health care facilities, and social and cultural barriers preventing women from receiving basic health care services. With the winter months ahead the situation is likely to get worse.

Mr. Javid Afridi Project Coordinator, Abasin Foundation, an implementing partner of UNICEF
"You see, the Swat is the epicentre of the floods. It hit swat first and then the rest of the whole country."

UNICEF and its partners are on the ground in flood affected communities like Charbagh, intensifying service delivery and social mobilisation activities. They are here to garner support for vital vaccination and health campaigns and are
helped by the local community. During a meeting of the town community elders in Dheri village, Habib Ullah Khan, the community's leader welcomed the health teams and urged the community elders to not only support the health workers but ensure that all eligible women and children access these services.

In an effort to provide these vital health care services, registration teams are going door to door to identify pregnant women and register children for measles vaccinations and sometimes even performing on spot polio vaccinations. In August alone over 90 percent of the children were vaccinated and 82 per cent received vitamin A supplementation. A UNICEF supported campaign called 'Mother and Child Days' delivers a multitude of high-impact, low-cost child survival interventions. It also provides counselling sessions designed to teach lessons about hygiene, nutrition and preventable diseases like diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria. These sessions are essential: the impact of the floods has resulted in even higher rates in neonatal and maternal mortality. In 2008 alone a study showed 100 out of every 1,000 children in the province were dying before their fifth birthday.

One vital aspect of these services are prenatal and postnatal check-ups.
And flood affected families are receiving newborn kits, bed nets, soap and water purification tablets. To ensure continued efforts made here, UNICEF is currently appeal¬ing for US$ 252.3 million under their inter-agency "Pakistan Floods Emergency Response Plan (FERP)". US$ 50.8 million are designated for health services and seeks to ensure that Lady Health Workers, Community Midwives and health care facilities are able to resume and restore com¬munity-based maternal, neonatal and child health services.

This is Anja Baron reporting for UNICEF Television. For for information visit www.unicef.org. UNITE FOR CHILDREN

For more information, please visit: http://www.unicef.org/pakistan or http://www.facebook.com/unicefpakistan

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