The minister of state for law, informed the House that a 2017 World Health Assembly report noted that 20% of the world’s population had hearing issues.
4.8 percent of the population either has hearing problems or experiences difficulties listening as a result of medical conditions and other risks according to senator Dr. Sania Nishtar .
In accordance with the World Health Organization‘s World Report on Hearing 2021 and the actions taken by the Federal Government to address this health priority, she introduced a motion in the Senate to discuss the topic of “integrated, person-centred ear and hearing care.”
In her remarks to the House, Sania Nishtar cited the shocking statistics from the World Report on Hearing 2021, which stated that 1.3 billion people worldwide had hearing problems, with 134 million of those individuals being severely affected or hearing impaired. ” The statistics regarding people with special needs in Pakistan are murky.
According to a Rapid Assistive Technology survey conducted by the Ministry of National Health Sciences Regulations and Coordination, hearing impairment affects 4.8% of the nation’s population as a whole. Elderly individuals who wear hearing aids are also included.
She emphasised that the issue was that there was no national plan, strategy, committee, or task force in place in the nation, and there were no special protocols for paramedics dealing with hearing impairments.
The nation, on the other hand, had a proper task force that created proper eye care teams for ophthalmologists in cases of diseases related to vision, she added. Sania Nishtar lamented the lack of a coordinated national effort to address hearing care and disabilities.
She recommended that the Senate Committee on Health receive the motion from the House and form a national taskforce with the responsibility of creating a three-year national plan and making sound recommendations.
The minister of state for law, informed the House that a 2017 World Health Assembly report noted that 20% of the world’s population had hearing issues. If things continued as they were, he continued, “2.5 billion people would develop hearing problems, and 700 million would require treatment for these problems.”
While moving the motion to discuss the National Immunization Policy 2022’s implementation status, Senator Prof. Dr. Mehr Taj Roghani stated that Dr. Faisal Sultan, the former SAPM on Health, and his team put great effort into creating the historic document.
“It is a thorough and forward-thinking document, and its implementation must be guaranteed.” She continued by pointing out that, despite efforts, only two cases of polio were recently reported in war-torn Afghanistan, compared to 23 cases in Pakistan.
In response to her motion, the Minister of State for Law said the government was aware of the situation and would be open to any recommendations made by her or the Upper House to help Pakistan become polio-free. Earlier, Senator Mohsin Aziz made the motion regarding the government’s actions to prohibit or limit the use of small plastic bottles (500 ml or less) that pose a threat to the environment, cause pollution, and clog drains.
He claimed that the federal minister in charge of climate change wanted to consider the motion herself but was unable to do so because of her poor health. He had been informed by the minister that the motion had been forwarded to various departments for their feedback.