Pakistan’s Healthcare System: A Review of Major Challenges and the First Comprehensive Universal Health Coverage Initiative

Abstract

Each country's healthcare system has a different structure and functioning designed to meet the needs of its people utilizing the available resources. Due to ever-growing population needs and constantly emerging public health problems, it is vital for any healthcare system to be ready to adapt, recognize its limitations, and improve its flaws by learning from other healthcare models across the globe. In this article, we analyzed the significant challenges faced by Pakistan's healthcare system (PHS) and the first comprehensive initiative taken for universal health coverage in Pakistan. Inequitable distribution of resources, inadequate healthcare spending, non-adherence to preventative healthcare and brain drain are the major problems in the PHS. On the other hand, the recently introduced universal health coverage initiative, the Sehat Sahulat Program (SSP), can be considered one of the biggest achievements of the country's healthcare system.