Severe medicine shortage cripples patient care at JPMC Karachi

Severe medicine shortage hits Karachi’s JPMC, disrupting critical care

KARACHI: The Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) is facing a severe shortage of essential and life-saving medicines, seriously affecting patient care across emergency, OPD, and inpatient wards.

The disruption follows the expiration of the hospital’s annual procurement contract on June 30, leaving departments dependent on local purchases that have failed to meet demand. As one of Pakistan’s largest government hospitals, JPMC receives hundreds of patients daily, many of whom now face delays in treatment due to lack of critical drugs.

Reports from hospital staff reveal that life-saving and surgical medicines, including those required for emergency surgeries, are either unavailable or in dangerously short supply. Several surgeries have been postponed, though the hospital administration denies any operational impact.

“Medicines are being procured through alternative channels,” claimed hospital spokesperson Jahangir Durrani, adding that essential supplies were still reaching departments.

However, on-ground accounts from patients and medical staff point to a very different reality.

Poor patients hardest hit by medicine crisis

Patients and their attendants, many from low-income households, are bearing the brunt of this crisis. Alongside the drug shortage, the cost of essential diagnostic tests — including for dengue, malaria, and hepatitis — has also increased, putting affordable healthcare out of reach for many.

This dual burden is especially troubling in public hospitals like JPMC, which serve as lifelines for economically vulnerable communities in Karachi and Sindh.

Key impacts of the JPMC medicine shortage:

• Emergency wards struggling to provide timely treatment
• Diagnostic test prices have surged for key infections
• Surgeries delayed due to non-availability of anesthesia and surgical drugs
• Chronic illness patients facing lapses in regular medication
• Out-of-pocket spending rising for low-income families

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