Spread of infections among marchers feared

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in the federal capital and the Rawalpindi’s allied hospitals have strengthened medical services for patients at their outpatient departments besides strengthening emergency services.

The healthcare facilities arranged special measures to meet extraordinary burden of OPD patients in the face of certain infections among measures of ‘Azadi’ and ‘Inquilab’ marches if they had to stay in open for days the sit-in as has been announced by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek.

The teaching hospitals in twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi have taken certain measures to extend services in almost all the departments operating there in.

PIMS and allied hospitals in town including Benazir Bhutto Hospital, Holy Family Hospital and District Headquarters Hospitals have already arranged special contingency plans to deal with any untoward incident.

It was anticipated that the hospitals in the region including PIMS have to face extraordinary burden of emergencies in case of any clash between the marchers and personnel of law enforcement agencies. However, later a number of health experts felt the need of strengthening OPD services as well. If the marchers stay for days in the open, the PIMS may receive extra ordinary burden of patients with dehydration, food and water-borne diseases, fever and upper respiratory tract infections including sore throat and flu, said the official spokesman of PIMS Dr. Wasim Ahmed Khwaja.

  Dr waseem feared that there might be the greater number of patients with complications of diabetes and other chronic diseases during the sit-in. Chances of spread of infections through faeco-oral route among the marchers are, however no less, Dr Khwaja.

Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Javed Akram and PIMSs’ Management Committee Chairman Professor Khaleeq-uz-Zaman are said to have made special arrangements to meet any emergency departments of the hospital.