In a landmark step to save newborn lives, the Pakistan Paediatric Association (PPA) has launched the country’s first neonatal resuscitation guidelines tailored for healthcare providers working in tertiary as well as resource-constrained settings.
The guidelines were unveiled at the seventh Aga Khan University Paediatrics & Child Health research conference last week. Pakistan has one of the world’s highest neonatal mortality rates, with a neonate dying every 2 minutes. Prematurity, infections and birth asphyxia cause 90 percent of these deaths. Experts say a uniform national policy on neonatal resuscitation could help reduce preventable deaths.
“Neonatology is a highly sensitive and rapidly evolving field. In our country different institutes follow different guidelines modified and adapted from the guidelines of various countries. The Neonatal Resuscitation Council of Neonatology Group of Pakistan Pediatric Association took on the task to develop or county’s own up-to-date, evidence based and pragmatic guidelines that could be uniformly adopted in advanced as well as resource limited healthcare centers,” said Dr Sohail Salat, associate Professor at the AKU and chairman of the Neonatology Group of PPA, while presenting the new manual.
Given that many healthcare facilities cannot afford or maintain advanced equipment, the manual offers simple alternatives alongside basic physiology and step-by-step instructions in clear language, algorithms and diagrams.
At the conference, Dr Salat handed over Pakistan’s Neonatal Resuscitation Manual to senior pediatricians including Professor Sajid Maqbool, former dean and professor emeritus of the University of Child Health Sciences, Lahore, PPA Secretary General Professor Mohsina Ibrahim and the AKU’s chair of Paediatrics, Professor Fyezah Jehan.
The manual is intended for neonatologists, pediatricians, nurses, obstetricians, pediatric surgeons, anesthetists, medical & nursing students and rescue workers. “We decided to approach universities so we can have a uniform policy and curricula at the undergraduate level,” Dr Salat said, adding that the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan, the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council and provincial healthcare commissions would also be approached.
Published in The News on August 28, 2025.