The entrance of the Government Saidu Sharif Hospital greets the visitors with the stench of human waste mixing with hospital disinfectants. Down the corridor towards the children’s ward, one can see trash piled up in small mounds alongside carelessly discarded used medical supplies. However, in a little corner on the east of the large ward, the Wajeeha Thalassaemia Centre stands out as an anomaly. This is a small unit within the paediatric ward, dedicated for the treatment of young patients suffering from the blood disorder. Its walls are painted a bright Mediterranean yellow, offset by colourful beds.

Every month, at least 800 thalassaemia sufferers from all over Malakand Division visit the centre for treatment.

According to data available with the hospital, there are at least 7,000 thalassaemia patients in Malakand Division, with 4,000 in Swat alone.

According to doctors, such a high incidence of this inherited disease in Malakand is the common practice of consanguineous marriages within the local population.

On any given day, mothers, young and old, can be seen accompanying their children who have come to get blood transfused as treatment.

One such mother is Nazia, a young mother in her late teens. This is her first trip to the Saidu Sharif Hospital for her seven-month-old son Majid Khan’s treatment.

Nazia has found herself in a difficult condition having to bring her son to the hospital every month while her husband is in Dubai, but this was not unexpected.

“My husband is my first cousin, and even though our families knew that there was a high chance that our children will have the disease they still went ahead with the marriage,” said Nazia as she cradled her son.

The centre currently serves the population of Malakand Division, comprising districts of Swat, Buner, Shangla, Kohistan, Lower Dir, Upper Dir and Chitral.

Wajeeha Thalassaemia Centre is a public-private partnership venture that came about in August 2011 with the help of Pashuma Health Foundation along with generous support from the Pakistan Army and the National Bank of Pakistan. The DCO Swat allocated a ward in the children’s ward and the facility was named after a young Swati girl who died of thalassemia.

“Wajeeha was a little girl from Swat who unfortunately succumbed to her illness due to lack of timely treatment. This centre is set up in her memory and aims to help create awareness of the disorder as well as provide relief to children all over the district,” says Qadir Nawaz Khan, the man behind this initiative.

Talking to this reporter, Kulsoom, a staff nurse at the facility says that some 15 patients are given transfusions every day.

“The centre has played an active role in creating awareness. Also, the bright and clean surroundings here give the children some distraction from the pain of going through the process.”

“Parents generally do not discriminate when it comes to treatment although there are times when the lives of young girls could be saved due to timely transfusions,” she added.

A doctor at the hospital said that more awareness needs to be created about the disease and the pitfall of cousin marriage.

Thalassaemia is a genetic disease and the probability of a child getting the disease can be calculated through tests before marriage, especially in families where the disease already exists.

“What the community needs here is pre-marital testing to identify men and women who can pass this disease to their children,” the doctor added, declining to be named.

Currently, the centre allows free of cost blood tests, donor screenings for diseases including Hepatitis B and C, blood transfusions, and among other things, it most importantly provides pre-marital blood testing to find recessive carriers of thalassaemia.

Another ambitious aim of the hospital is to provide thalassemia therapy to all the 4,000 patients in the region.

“Our goal is to give the 7,000 patients in Malakand treatment. Also, we do hope that by 2020, Malakand would be thalassaemia free,” adds Mr Qadir.

Locals have welcomed the initiative of Wajeeha Thalassaemia Centre as till a few years ago, insurgency had taken its toll on them.

Naima Gul, a 12-year-old from Romyal village in Swat, is a thalassaemic.

Shahban Anjum, Gul’s mother, recalled the difficult times they underwent in getting her treated when the Taliban ran riot.

“There were times when we had to take her for her transfusion appointments but given the checking on the roads, it would take us hours to cover a distance of 10km. We literally had to plead and beg and would make it to the hospital, fearing for her life,” Mrs Anjum said.

“There are days when my husband, who is a male nurse, had to take days off from work to take her for transfusions, as women could not travel alone,” the government schoolteacher added.

Over the years, Naima’s verve has turned her into a local celebrity, especially after she was given the honorary title of a pilot by the Pakistan Army. Recently, the army also gave Rs1 million cheque for a thalassaemia centre in Shaggai, Swat which will be named after Naima Gul.

“If it is possible, I would suggest everyone to get tested for genetic disorders. We all want to see our children happy and healthy and if a small test can ensure their well-being, why not,” concluded Mrs Anjum.