Islamabad:
President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called for concerted efforts to contain the hepatitis epidemic and urged all stakeholders to join a unified response to this growing threat to public health.
In their separate messages on the “World Hepatitis Day” on Monday, they said that Pakistan had joined the international community to reaffirm the commitment to eliminate hepatitis and protect the health of the people.
The “World Hepatitis Day” is observed to raise awareness of the dangers of the disease and promote collective action to prevent and control it. They noted that Pakistani health professionals, researchers and front -line workers worked tirelessly and they need community support.
“We must implement complete strategies that combine mass awareness campaigns, effective vaccination readers, timely screening and access to treatment. It is imperative to extend these services to all segments of the company, in particular in poorly served and rural areas,” said Zardari in his message.
In his message, Shehbaz mentioned the launch of the Prime Minister’s national program for the elimination of hepatitis C, which aimed to project more than 165 million people by 2030 and provide free treatment to all positive cases.
“This is a national movement which testifies to our collective commitment to save lives and to secure the future. To make this vision a reality, we call on different segments of society to contribute to efforts to end this scourge,” he said.
He said that awareness of hepatitis is essential to break the stigma surrounding the disease.
