Poor and low-income people in Pakistan who cannot afford to visit hospitals or dental clinics, are forced to resort to “street medicine” practiced by people lying on the sidewalks.

In Rawalpindi, 20 km from the capital Islamabad, many people line the sidewalks of the city’s busiest streets, providing dental services for the poor.

Some accounts say that “street medicine” has existed in the city for dozens of years, while others state that it has existed since the founding of the state of Pakistan.

These people treat their customers’ teeth with unclean tools amid the noise and exhaust of cars, and consider that this situation does not represent a problem that prevents them from practicing their work.

The cost of dental hospitals or clinics in Pakistan ranges between 3,000 and 5,000 rupees ($18-30), while the minimum wage in Pakistan is 20,000 rupees ($120), which drives many to go to “street medicine,” which costs within ( 2-3 dollars).

According to the World Bank report issued in 2020, 24.3 percent of the Pakistani people live below the poverty line.

** I’ve been in the profession for 26 years

Aftab Khan, one of those who practice dentistry on the street, told Anadolu Agency that he has been practicing the profession for 26 years in Rawalpindi, and that he inherited it from his father and grandfather.

He added that he receives a wage in the range of 300-500 rupees (2-3 dollars), and that he treats 7 or 8 people per day, indicating that he considers himself an expert in dental prostheses.

He explained that they buy used tools and materials from the same places that doctors buy in clinics, and the only difference is that they do not have a license to practice the profession or clinics.

** I do not have the money

Sadiq Hosseini, one of the citizens being treated by Aftab Khan, said that he went to one of the “street doctors” in his village, but he did not get the required result, so he came to Rawalpindi.

Hosseini added that he does not know whether these people have a license to practice the profession or not, but that they are much cheaper than dentists in hospitals and clinics.

He continued, to Anadolu Agency: “I came here because I do not have enough money to go to dentists’ clinics.”

As for Omar Yunus, a dentist at Islamabad Hospital, he said that the situation of these people is very sad, and that they have not received any education in the field and do not have a license to practice the profession, and the atmosphere in which they work is unclean and unhealthy and poses a threat to the health of patients.

Anatolia