KARACHI Minister of Health Lt-Gen W.A. Burki, said here yesterday that every citizen, whether a town-dweller or a villager, must be provided medical assistance commensurate with the country's resources. Inaugurating the 6th All-Pakistan Medical Conference at the PMA House, the Minister outlined the government's efforts to improve the health services across the country.

Twenty-five delegates from the United States, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, India, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Belgium and France are attending the three-day conference along with a hundred delegates and 600 observers from the host country.

Lt-Gen Burki said that the 'Revolutionary Government', aiming at the creation of a welfare state in Pakistan, was giving due attention to the health of the farmers and was setting up rural health centres and sub-centres. This year 20 centres and 60 sub-centres would be set up, he added. Each centre will be capable of looking after 50,000 to 100,000 persons.

The minister said that medical problems in Pakistan could be classified into three categories Prevention of certain epidemic diseases such as malaria, smallpox and cholera; provision of medical service to the entire population; and improvement of our system of medical education.

The government, said Gen Burki, was keen to reconstruct the medical and health services on a sound basis. The resources available were limited and every rupee was needed for development. In spite of this, he said, large sums were being allocated for the improvement of health services as he believed that money spent on health services yielded big dividends.

Worse than woodworm

BELFAST Hospitals and schools in Northern Ireland are banning women and girls wearing shoes with stiletto heels. At a maternity hospital in Belfast, a special 'screening room' for scrutinising heels is set up at visiting times. Visitors with stiletto heels are refused admission. All country schools in Fermanagh, near here, have introduced a ban of staff, pupils and visitors with stiletto shoes. As one country education offices explained “They are worse than woodworm.”

But the shoe trade in Northern Ireland is unperturbed. Fashionable women from 15 to 50 years of age are still wearing them. “Sales of 'teeter' heel footwear are booming,” said a spokesman.