The world has significantly progressed, although maternal mortality still remains high,
especially in Pakistan. This is not only due to geography or genetic defects, but also
because of poor maternal practices heavily influenced by cultural myths, superstitions,
and old wives’ tales, along with unevenly distributed healthcare resources across
regions. It’s not just limited to these factors; in fact, it is also about how these influence
modern-day female literacy regarding maternity.
Pakistan, despite its policies to reduce maternal mortality, is still severely affected due to
the evident gap between policy design and implementation, with an annual allocation of
only 2% of its GDP to health, which is chronically low. We can infer this from the fact
that healthcare was devolved to provinces under the 18th Amendment, leaving the
federal government without legislative control and a lack of centralised accountability.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Pakistan accounts for over 9,800
maternal and 246,300 newborn deaths each year, and barely a few make it to the
headlines.
The primary reason is believed to be that death during childbirth is viewed as a natural
risk and inevitable, rather than a systemic failure. Most of these deaths happen in
remote settlements where the population often lacks media representation, so their
stories rarely break into mainstream media. Among both rural and urban areas,
discussions surrounding reproductive health still remain a taboo, just as women’s
bodies remain culturally sensitive and stigmatised to talk about. This ultimately
discourages families from speaking out publicly and suppresses narratives that would
humanise the crisis.
Simultaneously, a large number of Pakistani communities have fostered a distrust of
mainstream medical professionals, leading families to place far greater faith in local
elderly women and traditional birth attendants. It is common to rely on unverified home
remedies (totkas) and traditional delivery practices that frequently result in severe
infections or delayed critical interventions. This barrier is further intensified by rigid
modesty norms. The idea of being exposed to a male gynaecologist is often viewed as
culturally unacceptable or immodest, prompting families to refuse emergency hospital
transfers altogether. This results in tragic outcomes which are categorized as
unavoidable natural fates rather than preventable medical emergencies.
While deep-seated scepticism keeps many mothers away from clinical facilities, an
opposing and equally dangerous perspective exists: uncritical over-trust in the formal
medical system. In many hospitals and private clinics, routine procedures are frequently
dictated by practitioner convenience rather than evidence-based maternal care, such as
the overuse of synthetic labour inductors, unnecessary Caesarean sections, and
birthing on the back. When families accept these routine practices without informed
consent or health literacy, institutional efficiency is prioritised over maternal safety,
resulting in preventable birth trauma and severe health complications.
In parallel, deaths during childbirth also stem from severe financial constraints that
render safe clinical delivery unaffordable. Consequently, families are forced to rely on
low-cost, unequipped local alternatives, turning what should be routine maternal care
into a catastrophic financial choice between survival and medical safety.
The good news is that most of these deaths are, in fact, preventable with the right
healthcare infrastructure, national funding towards hospitals to cover the financial gap,
and the elimination of cultural shame surrounding maternity.
Consequently, a larger population would be open to pursuing maternal education so the country produces eligible, intellectual doctors and nurses, as well as empowered mothers who are
informed enough to make the right decisions concerning their births and call out
impractical and detrimental choices made by healthcare professionals instead of relying
on them blindly.