Public health: Govt ‘not doing enough’ to deal with Congo fever

Doctors, lawyer say authorities not following standard procedures

LAHORE: Isolation wards set up by the provincial government at major hospitals to deal with Congo virus patients do not follow First Safety Protocol which includes specialised training for doctors and provision of personal protective equipment, several doctors The Express Tribune spoke to claimed on Thursday.

“Declaring a room in an emergency ward an isolation ward is not enough,” said Dr Azeem, a medical officer at Services Hospital’s emergency ward. “This can result in a Congo fever epidemic.”

Azeem said protective clothing and equipment designed to protect the wearer from infection were missing. He stressed the need for setting up isolation wards on the pattern of Aga Khan Hospital saying that the facility in Karachi was fully equipped to deal with Congo fever patients. “The situation is bad at all [public] hospitals,” says Advocate Azhar Siddique who on Wednesday moved an application to chief minister’s office calling upon the government to take appropriate steps to deal with the disease.

Siddique also said there were no specialist doctors to deal with the disease.

“A survey recently found eight patients suspected of having Congo fever receiving treatment at hospitals across the province. At least two people have died from the disease this year,” Siddique said. He did not say who had taken the survey. Department Communicable Diseases Department Director Dr Asim said the government was prepared to deal with the virus. He said First Safety Protocol was in place at all hospitals. “We have launched an SMS service and a media campaign to educate citizens about the disease. Isolation units have been set up at hospitals and basic response teams formed,” he said.

He said doctors were being given training to treat those suffering from the disease. A training programme had been completed for doctors in Lahore, Faisalabad, Bahawalpur and Multan. Medicines needed for such patients were available at all hospitals, he said.

University of the Veterinary and Animal Sciences Vice Chancellor Talat Naseer Pasha said Congo fever virus was transmitted through ticks and contact with infected animals’ blood.

He said the Livestock Department, which oversees the UVAS, had established camps at city entrances and animals markets to vaccinate sacrificial animals against the virus.

“Human-to-human transmission can result from contact with bodily fluids, including blood. Hospital-acquired infections can occur due to improper sterilisation of medical equipment, re-use of needles and contamination of medical supplies,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 26^th, 2016.