Islamabad: Pakistan must shift from hospital-centred treatment to disease prevention, stronger primary healthcare, community-based services and digital technologies to improve health outcomes, leading healthcare experts said on Thursday, warning that the existing system was struggling to meet the needs of a growing population.
Speaking at the inaugural session of the two-day International Conference on Future of Healthcare 2026 (FHCC 2026), national and international experts called for reforms in healthcare financing, medical education, disease surveillance and service delivery rather than simply building more hospitals. They said artificial intelligence, telemedicine and emerging technologies could improve access but could not replace trained professionals and effective primary care.
The conference, being held on October 29 and 30 at the Gandhara Heritage and Culture Centre in Islamabad, has been organised by the International Center for Regenerative and Cellular Medicine. It brings together healthcare professionals, researchers, academics, policymakers and industry representatives from Pakistan and abroad.
Experts from Korea, Germany, Turkey, Egypt and other countries are participating in scientific sessions, panel discussions, research presentations and workshops on workforce development, artificial intelligence, regenerative medicine, genomics, sustainable hospital infrastructure and emerging medical technologies.
Health Services Academy Vice Chancellor Prof Shahzad Ali Khan said most Pakistanis did not consider health their greatest wealth, with surveys showing that people prioritised almost everything except their own health. He said around 90 percent were physically inactive during leisure time and 90 percent consumed fewer than two servings of vegetables daily, while 65 percent of urban and 79 percent of rural residents ate less than one serving of fruit a day.
Prof Shahzad called for shifting investment towards prevention, regular screening, healthier diets, physical activity and early diagnosis. He recommended strengthening primary healthcare, using artificial intelligence and digital technologies for preventive screening, improving chronic disease management and reducing unnecessary hospital admissions through community-based services.
Dr Jasim Anwar, chairman of the organising committee, highlighted the importance of bringing together academia, healthcare institutions, industry and international collaborators to promote research and innovation. Referring to efforts to develop an international medical complex in Islamabad, he said collaboration with international experts was essential for establishing modern, sustainable facilities.
Aga Khan University President Dr Sulaiman Shahabuddin said Pakistan needed to rethink its healthcare system, noting that several developing countries had achieved substantially better outcomes despite limited resources. He said Pakistan had reduced under-five mortality by 48 percent since 2000, compared with 80 percent in Rwanda, 71 percent in India, 64 percent each in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and 59 percent in Thailand.
“Progress should not be confused with success,” he said, adding that Pakistan could learn from countries that had strengthened community healthcare, primary care networks and financial protection.
Dr Shahabuddin said Pakistan spent about 2.5 percent of GDP on health, while patients paid 53 percent of expenditure directly from their pockets. Community health workers reached only 60 to 65 percent of the targeted rural population. He cited Bangladesh’s community-based programmes and Thailand’s universal health coverage as examples of how better organisation, trained workers and effective financing could improve outcomes.
On digital healthcare, he said Aga Khan University Hospital’s telemedicine programme had facilitated 92,882 consultations, trained 53,679 healthcare professionals and saved an estimated 213 years of cumulative patient travel time.
Major General Muhammad Rafique, Commandant Armed Forces Postgraduate Medical Institute, said artificial intelligence, genomics, precision medicine and regenerative therapies were transforming healthcare, but technology could not compensate for inadequate professional training.
He called for competency-based medical education, simulation training, ethical oversight and stronger civil-military collaboration, and stressed the need for climate-resilient hospitals able to maintain essential services during floods, disease outbreaks and other emergencies.
Omar, an architect representing Turkish healthcare design and consultancy firm NKY, said sustainable hospital infrastructure required careful planning, energy efficiency and resilience against climate-related and structural risks. He said the company had worked on hospital projects covering more than 24,000 beds across nine countries and was involved in planning a proposed medical complex in Islamabad.
Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal were scheduled to address the inaugural ceremony but did not attend.
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