KARACHI, Nov 21: The health authorities must take notice of the increasing number of fistula cases occurring due to the negligence of untrained surgeons. It is high time the government, instead of focusing on the number of medical institutions, improved the quality of training being imparted to students.

President of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Pakistan Dr Shershah Syed said this at a seminar held here on Wednesday organised by the Pakistan National Forum on Women’s Health in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Pakistan Medical Association at PMA House.

The programme started off with a 15-minute documentary showing the ordeal of a woman from Thar who spent her entire life in misery due to fistula and the death of her first child. Later, Dr Syed said that about 547 cases of vesico-vaginal fistulae (VVF) and recto-vaginal fistulae (RVF) were operated upon in two years at eight UNFPA-run centres in Pakistan. Of them, 30 per cent of the cases involved untrained surgeons.

“This is a serious issue and shows that medical students are not being provided adequate training to handle fistula cases. The government needs to focus on the quality of education rather than the number of institutions,” he said, adding that the government should make teachers and students work full time from 8am to 5pm as is the rule in some private institutions.

The entire system of training, he said, had been destroyed as medical institutions were deserted by 1pm as most teachers and students left by then. He appealed to young gynaecologists to be responsible in their routine surgical practices.

UNFPA Fistula Project Officer Dr Faaria Ahsan said the organisation had set up 10 centres all over Pakistan where patients received free treatment and food. The organisation also bore the pick-and-drop expenses of the patients.

Sindh Additional Secretary Health Dr Abdul Majid said that the government was committed to eradicate this curse from society and the Sindh government would utilize all means to address the issue. He thanked the UNFPA for helping the poor, ailing women of Pakistan, while urging health workers to bring fistula cases to centres for free treatment.

Aurat Foundation Chairperson Anees Haroon said that no woman should suffer from this condition and it was the duty of the government to fulfil its responsibilities in healthcare. She extended the full support of her organisation to tackle the health problem.

Unicef representative Dr Mazhar, President PMA Karachi Dr Naseer Ahmed Baloch, General-Secretary Dr Qaisar Sajjad and Dr Samrina Hashmi also spoke.