Public Services International (PSI) recently launched Pakistan’s first online interactive documentary experience that provides critical insight into the lives of lady health workers, who are on the frontline against infectious diseases, saving hundreds of lives every single day.
Lady health workers are a vital part of a government program that was developed in 1994 to provide basic healthcare services to underprivileged communities in rural and low-income urban areas. They have played a crucial role in polio vaccine dispensation, pre-and post-natal awareness and healthcare for rural mothers, health education and promotion, family planning, and most recently, for Covid-19.
The docu-series will be divided into episodes, and the key episode, “Behind the Mask: Pakistan,” focuses on the struggles faced by healthcare workers, specifically in Pakistan. It chronicles their challenges and the impact of Covid-19 on their lives. The episode features Hassena, a lady health worker who, along with her colleagues, formed the All-Sindh Lady Health Workers and Employees Union (ASLHWEU) to advocate for better working conditions and wages. The documentary sheds light on the difficult working conditions, low pay, inflation and wage stagnation, and harassment that lady health workers face.
PSI campaigns for flood relief, the restoration of the health risk allowance for health workers, the provision of the service structure for lady health workers, and the cancellation of debt, including Pakistan’s sovereign debt as part of climate reparations.
Since the documentary was filmed, the health risk allowance has been withdrawn for healthcare workers, despite being constantly at risk, treating patients with infectious diseases. Issues around wages and hiring, along with the lack of funding for the healthcare sector, continue to build, and the recent devastating flood has created additional health crises.
The floods have displaced at least 7.9 million people and damaged or destroyed more than 2 million houses and 1,460 health facilities, wiping out a large part of the country’s agriculture. Frontline workers are struggling to address the immediate crisis of injured and displaced people while the spread of water-borne diseases and limited medical supplies continue to create further hardship. Many Lady Health Workers have been affected by the floods through displacement and illness.
Overall, Behind the Mask: Pakistan is a poignant portrayal of the struggles faced by healthcare workers, particularly lady health workers, and highlights the need for better working conditions, wages, and support in the healthcare sector. The documentary is a call to action, urging the government and stakeholders to prioritize the well-being of frontline workers and ensure that they have the resources they need to continue providing essential services to the most vulnerable communities.
