Majumdar B, Amarsi Y, Carpio B
McMaster University Faculty of Health Sciences, Hamilton, Ontario.
Can Nurse. 1997 May;93(5):32-4.
Pakistan's health characteristics are worse than those of other Asian countries at similar stages of development. Its mortality rate for children under five is 139 per 1,000, and its maternal mortality is 60 per 10,000. Malnutrition in women and children is widespread; 50 per cent of children under five are stunted. Pakistan's population growth rate of 3.1 per cent per year is among the highest in Asia. The high population growth rate and poor health status of many people call for extensive health care services, but, unfortunately, health services do not reach most of the people of Pakistan. Partly because the training of doctors and nurses is lengthy and expensive, there is an acute shortage of health care providers, especially women. Although female health professionals are preferred for caring for women, cultural constraints inhibit women from seeking education. Such is the multifaceted dilemma in the provision of primary health care in Pakistan.
巴基斯坦的健康状况在处于类似发展阶段的其他亚洲国家中较为糟糕。其五岁以下儿童死亡率为每1000人中有139人，孕产妇死亡率为每10000人中有60人。妇女和儿童营养不良的情况普遍存在；五岁以下儿童中有50%发育迟缓。巴基斯坦每年3.1%的人口增长率在亚洲名列前茅。高人口增长率以及许多人的健康状况不佳，需要广泛的医疗保健服务，但不幸的是，巴基斯坦的大多数民众无法获得医疗服务。部分原因在于医生和护士的培训耗时且成本高昂，医疗保健提供者严重短缺，尤其是女性。尽管照顾女性患者时更倾向于女性医疗专业人员，但文化限制阻碍了女性接受教育。这就是巴基斯坦在提供初级医疗保健方面面临的多方面困境。
