Over 20,000 women die annually during childbirth in Pakistan as doctors flag profit-driven surgeries
KARACHI:
With cesarean sections on the rise across Pakistan, medical experts have raised alarm over the growing number of unnecessary surgical births, warning that profit-driven practices, unqualified healthcare providers and weak regulation are putting the lives of thousands of mothers and newborns at risk each year.
The Medical and Social Welfare Committee of the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi, organised a seminar titled “The Rising Trend of Cesarean Sections in Pakistan: Causes, Reasons and Solutions” at Hasina Moin Hall, where leading gynecologists raised serious concerns over the increasing number of C-sections and maternal deaths in the country.
Renowned gynecologist Professor Dr Sher Shah Syed, along with Dr Shabina Naz Masood, Professor Dr Sonia Naqvi and Dr Bushra Mohsin, spoke at the seminar.
Addressing the audience, Dr Sher Shah Syed termed the growing number of cesarean deliveries a “serious and disturbing question,” asking why so many women are undergoing surgical births. “Was a woman created only to have her abdomen cut?” he questioned. He said that more than 20,000 women die every year in Pakistan due to complications during childbirth, calling it a shameful reality for any civilised society.
He said C-sections have increasingly become a financially motivated procedure, leading to their unnecessary use. “The first normal delivery may be difficult, but the second and third usually become easier. In contrast, the first C-section may be easy, but subsequent ones become more dangerous,” he explained. He also pointed out that in some areas, inexperienced doctors are performing up to 10-12 surgeries a day instead of trained gynecologists.
Dr Syed further said that separating newborns from their mothers immediately after a C-section weakens a child’s immunity, stressing that a mother’s embrace is essential for a newborn. Citing examples of countries such as the US, Denmark and Norway, he said midwives successfully conduct normal deliveries, resulting in healthier mothers and babies. He emphasised that Pakistan’s C-section rate should not exceed 10 per cent.
Professor Dr Shabina Naz Masood said that the growing use of modern machines and gadgets has also contributed to the rise in C-sections. She noted that doctors’ harsh attitudes sometimes push patients themselves to demand surgical deliveries. In some cases, she said, unnecessary tests lead to decisions for C-sections even when the situation is not critical. She warned that quackery and home deliveries conducted by untrained midwives are extremely dangerous, stressing the need for proper hospitals where both mother and child can be fully monitored. She also criticised the practice of linking C-section numbers to hospital revenue.
Professor Dr Sonia Naqvi highlighted the presence of unqualified individuals running clinics under the guise of gynecologists. “Pregnancy is not a disease,” she said, adding that unnecessary fear is created to force women into C-sections. She also criticised doctors who, due to time constraints, pressure patients into opting for surgical births, calling it a grave injustice.
Dr Bushra Mohsin said that doctors always try to avoid C-sections and opt for normal deliveries, but in some cases complications make surgery unavoidable. She added that gynecologists also face threats of violence and vandalism from patients’ families, which at times forces doctors to decide in favour of C-sections to avoid risks.
The speakers unanimously called for stricter regulation, public awareness, and ethical medical practices to curb unnecessary cesarean procedures and ensure safer childbirth for women across Pakistan.
