COVID-19 is a transmissible and infectious disease with symptoms similar to pneumonia, ranging from moderate to severe. This study investigated the psychological experiences of patients both during their illness and after their recovery. The study employed purposive sampling and semi-structured interviews to gather insights from 13 COVID-19 survivors (7 women and 6 men). Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyze the interview transcripts. Participants ranged in age from 22 to 62 years. The analysis identified seven main themes of psychological experiences during the illness, each with several sub-themes. Key themes included denial of the disease, uncertainty about the illness, and psychological distress, which had sub-themes of depression and stress. Other themes included death anxiety, perceived social stigma (with loneliness as a sub-theme), exposure to infection (with restrictions as a sub-theme), and coping strategies (which encompassed active coping and avoidant coping). For experiences post-recovery, two main themes emerged, with eight sub-themes. The first was post-traumatic growth, which included attachment to God, acceptance of death, gratitude (toward God), trust in interpersonal relationships, gratitude toward people, and the significance of life. The second theme was delayed resilience, which involved recovery from insomnia and post-COVID psychological distress. The study concluded that surviving COVID-19 involves significant psychological challenges both during the illness and after recovery. These insights are valuable for psychologists and counselors in addressing the emotional and mental health needs of COVID-19 patients.

Healthcare provider dearth, particularly in Low and Middle-income countries (LMICs), reduces the development towards improved healthcare outcomes and accomplish the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs-3). This study aims to investigate the association between Professional and Non-professional healthcare provider distribution and neonatal mortality through the mediating role of maternal and child healthcare (MCH) services in Pakistan. The present research used data from the 2018 Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (PDHS) total sample that comprises (N = 8022). The dependent variable includes the risk of neonatal mortality 0–30 days. Bivariate and Multivariate analyses were conducted by utilizing the Cox proportional hazards and regression models. The estimation of mortality rates was achieved through generalized structural equation modelling (GSEM) and the 5000 bootstrap technique. All the investigations were carried out in STATA v. 16.1. Our results revealed that around 2.46% of neonatal deaths occur. The average healthcare provider distribution type was professional, 83.45%, non-professional, 1.45%, and no care, 15.11%. 0.88% of females are less likely to die within the first thirty days of their birth compared to males. The regression outcomes demonstrate that the healthcare providers were positive and significantly linked to neonatal mortality. Additionally, a unit increase in healthcare providers has a 1.20% Higher likelihood of increasing the MCH and overall reducing neonatal mortality (HR = 0.60). The outcomes illustrate that healthcare provider distribution and MCH play a vital role in minimizing neonatal mortality. To ensure well-distributed healthcare provider distribution, promoting maternal education, empowering women’s decision-making in acquiring MCH services utilization, and expanding access to free MCH services are the essentials for better maternal and healthcare outcomes.

Background: Pakistan has the third highest under-five mortality rate globally and minimal progress in reducing it, obstructing its achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3.2 targets. Despite a decline, Pakistan remains one of the top ten contributors to worldwide under-five mortality. Proper antenatal care (ANC) is vital for improving maternal and child health outcomes. This study aims to assess the association between ANC visits and under-five mortality. Moreover, this study also measures the association between the timing of ANC visits and under-five mortality. Methods: A difference-in-difference (DID) study design with propensity score matching (PSM) was employed to investigate the contributing impact of ANC on the estimation of under-five mortality rates. Statistics from two datasets, 2012 and 2018, of Pakistan demographic and health surveys (PDHS) have been utilized for analyses. This research sample consists of 15698 women aged 15–49 who attended ANC visits at varying times before childbirth. Results: This study has reported 730 cases of under-five mortality. 98% involved Women who had less than eight or more ANC visits, whereas 2% of under-five mortality cases occurred among those women who had eight or more ANC visits. Overall, our results showed that women who had 1–3 ANC visits reduced the likelihood of under-five mortality in Pakistan by 36% (CI=0.459–0.909, P-value 0.012), the women who had 4–7 ANC visits decreased the likelihood of under-five mortality by 45% (CI=0.364–0.843, P-value 0.006). Moreover, the females with eight or more ANC visits also reduced the likelihood of under-five mortality by 98% (CI=0.512–1.896, P-value 0.966). Conclusions: Policies and programs focusing more on ANC visits should be implemented to reduce under-five mortality rates significantly. By emphasizing timely and frequent ANC visits, these insights support the development of targeted interventions that can significantly improve child survival rates and support the achievement of SDG targets. Moreover, based on our DID analysis, the implementation of the free maternal and child healthcare (MCH) policy in Pakistan has led to a significant increase in ANC utilization and a consistent reduction in the under-five mortality rates.

Healthcare provider's distributional shortages, especially in developing countries, result in a slowdown in progress towards better healthcare outcomes