Written by: Muhammad Inshal Hussain X C
Currently this year due to excess summer monsoon rain in southern parts of the country and rains in northern regions, Pakistan suffered a devastating flood. Mainly the areas of Baluchistan and Sindh were affected and nearly one-third of Pakistan went flooded which affected 33 million people and livestock.
A lot of agricultural lands was destroyed and communication with the affected parts was cut. Pakistan and the outside world took sudden measures and even Pakistan’s army came in front to help the people. Donations were gathered from all over the country to help them.
After watching this all, I and my friend Abdullah Amais decided to put in some effort and do a little volunteer work in Baluchistan to help the people who are sick due to waterborne diseases and provide them with medical treatment and medicines. On Sunday 25 Sep we went to a small area of Baluchistan, together with an NGO, Child Health Foundation, near Hub that’s called Maingalabad. We set our medical camp in a small clinic that seemed to be the only one in such a large area. The NGO had also brought food packages for the people which they gave in some faraway areas.
At 10 am the doctors commenced their work. The moderator there assigned me and other volunteers duties to help Doctors by giving them medicines that they prescribed and to make medical registries where the patient’s name, age, diagnosis, and treatment should be written. As a human biology student, I recognized that most of the diseases were waterborne, and due to the usage of polluted water people was suffering from food poisoning, diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, malaria, dengue, worms, fungal skin infections, and other diseases. Most of the children were malnourished and they were just looking like some sheets on a skeleton. They were so deprived that they can’t even afford a normal medicine like Panadol to kill their fever.
We knew we would have difficulty communicating with the people as they speak Balochi that’s why we took interpreters with us so that they can tell the patient’s problems to the doctor.
Another thing I thought of was that giving them food or medicine for one time only won’t just help them in long term. Our doctors knew this too so they asked the people there to use boiled water and if they can’t use boiled water then do keep some water in sunlight so that the microorganisms would be killed.
I saw there that in the Hub river people were washing their vehicles, and not so far away some people were taking the water in the pots for bathing or other purposes. They are unaware that they are just polluting the river and that it can be fatal to many others, especially children. Our government institution must develop the area near the river and save it from being polluted.
One thing which I thought was great was the Chaos Medical Analysis Machine. It is made by an American NGO, EZ Shifa. The machine contains all the equipment to measure blood glucose level, temperature, heart rate, and other problems. The machine takes all the necessary measurements and then the patient can contact a doctor sitting online in any part of the world where the doctor will diagnose and prescribe medication to the patient. The machine is portable and can be taken to anywhere. Operating this machine is also very easy and a person with basic knowledge can operate the machine and check the patient. In rural regions where there are not many clinics and doctors, this machine can play a great role by providing free basic medical checkups and diagnoses from Doctors sitting online.
At 4 pm the camp ended its work and still, there were so many people who were in hope of getting medicine. The NGO decided that they will come again too and they will provide the clinic with facilities to treat the patients free of cost.
It was all very miserable to see the people there in such a condition where young children were dying of diseases and hunger and there was no one to offer aid to them. I hope that whatever the government has collected in the name of donations must reach those poor and they must be rehabilitated.
