KP's emergency healthcare system cripples as specialists flee abroad

Peshawar [Pakistan], May 7 : Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's healthcare system is facing a deepening crisis as emergency medicine specialists continue to leave the province due to poor salaries, lack of incentives, and limited career growth, raising serious concerns over the treatment of critically injured and severely ill patients, as reported by Dawn.

According to Dawn, health experts stated that emergency physicians in public hospitals are unable to engage in private practice like many other medical specialists, leaving them dependent solely on fixed government salaries. Doctors stated that this has made the field unattractive despite the increasing demand for trauma and emergency care in the province. A senior doctor at the Accident and Emergency Department of a medical teaching institution revealed that a highly experienced consultant who had served in the United Kingdom for nearly 15 years had once joined Lady Reading Hospital and significantly improved emergency services while training young doctors.

However, the specialist eventually resigned because the government failed to provide financial incentives comparable to international standards. The doctor added that many physicians trained under him also moved overseas, where emergency medicine experts are offered better salaries and professional recognition. Medical professionals stressed that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which has frequently suffered from terrorism, bomb blasts, road accidents, and natural disasters such as floods, urgently requires a strong emergency response system.

Experts stated that timely trauma care and trained emergency staff could significantly reduce deaths and long-term disabilities caused by accidents, heart attacks, strokes, and maternal complications. They also highlighted the need for modern emergency wards, better ambulance networks, rehabilitation facilities, and advanced training for doctors, nurses, and paramedics, as highlighted by Dawn.

Officials at Khyber Medical University said efforts were underway to establish an advanced emergency department connected to its 13 campuses across the province. They said that life-support training programmes for healthcare workers would soon begin to improve patient survival rates. Doctors also criticised the absence of promotions and academic recognition for emergency medicine specialists, as reported by Dawn.

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