KARACHI: Reproductive health clinic opens at Sobhraj
KARACHI, Jan 3: The Sobhraj Maternity Hospital has launched a counselling clinic in order to provide modern medical information to adolescent girls and young women on reproductive health.
The first session of the “Reproductive Health Counselling Clinic” was held in the hospital between 9am to 12 noon on Friday, participated by a large number of teenaged girls and young women. The clinic will be held on every Friday.
Medical Superintendent of the hospital Dr Shabeen Naz said that girls between the age of 10 to 25 years would attend the clinic, which would be conducted by senior doctors.
She expressed disappointment over the fact that although about 48 per cent of the country’s population consisted of youth under the age of 25 years, no serious efforts had been made to cater to their physiological and psychological needs.
She criticized the prevailing myths and misconceptions in society which add to various health problems faced by girls and young women, especially those growing up in an urban environment.
The programme will focus on the necessity of balanced diet, nutrition value, cleanliness and hygiene, besides health problems of girls and young women, she added.
Dispelling the impression that reproductive health pertained to sexual matters only, Dr Shabeen pointed out that it involved a system of interactions that looked into the serious issues related to physical and psychological changes occurring in that particular age.
She said that girls and even their mothers needed to know the outcome of changes in the body during puberty and its psychological aspects, including menstruation, teenage pregnancy and AIDS, hepatitis, etc.
According to a report, there are about 30 million adolescents in Pakistan and the figure for the world is approximately 900 million which would reach a billion mark by the year 2005.
Therefore, serious consideration is required for a comprehensive programme to improve physical and mental health condition of the youth, she added.
Dr Shabeen criticized certain taboos prevailing in society that add to health problems of girls and women, especially in a later stage of their life, most common of them being avoiding bath or having low protein diet during periods, besides the girls are discouraged to do physical exercise that is required for the body.
The SMH has written a letter to the education department of the city government for conducting such counselling programmes for students of class IX and X.
Dr Shabeen said that Sobraj Hospital is the only public sector hospital in Sindh which has been giving stipend equivalent to the basic pay of grade-17 to all its postgraduate students for the last one year.
She said that the oncology clinic drug therapy was successfully functioning in the hospital for the last nine months, where Dr Soomro has been rendering his honorary services.
The Sobhraj Maternity Hospital was established in 1928 and is the second oldest medical institution of Karachi after the Leprosy Hospital in Manghopir.— PPI
