Pakistan: UN reports urgent need for female doctors in quake relief

There is an urgent need for female medical staff in earthquake devastated regions of Pakistan to tend to women who traditionally prefer to be treated by other women, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported today.

OCHA also said that given the lack of funding for the flash appeal, the UN and its humanitarian partners have decided to target up to 200,000 people living in the higher valleys above the snowline, who may become inaccessible within the next four weeks, as well as an estimated 150,000 people who may choose to move down to the lower valleys.

The 8 October quake, which killed at least 73,000 people and injured almost as many others, left up to 3 million more homeless as the harsh Himalayan winter approaches. Only about $133 million of the $550 million sought in the UN Flash Appeal for the disaster have so far been contributed or pledged.

Yesterday OCHA reported that serious outbreaks of acute diarrhoea were highlighting the need for scaled up efforts to provide safe water and sanitation in makeshift camps and for more funding.