During 2016, 3,340 cases of the viral fever were reported in Rawalpindi’s hospital, while seven related deaths took place. This, officials said was down from 5,000 cases and 10 deaths in 2015.
However, the vast majority of these cases were from Islamabad which accounted for 2,755 cases.
The vast majority of these cases, around 2,460, were reported from the rural areas surrounding the capital but fall under the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). Only a fraction, 295 cases, were reported from the urban sectors with three deaths.
According to data compiled by hospitals, especially those in Rawalpindi, Tarlai and Rawat reported the most cases with 693 and 603 cases respectively till December 22. Other areas where high numbers of cases were reported included 407 from Sohan, 358 from Koral, and 232 from Bhara Kahu.
While officials claimed to have controlled the situation in the city, poor sanitation and a delayed onset of winter meant that the rural areas were caught in the midst of the epidemic. Most of the patients there, due to the proximity, opted to seek treatment at hospitals in Rawalpinidi which in turn faced pressure owing to limited capacity.
Private practice at Pims
To ease patient-load, institution-based private practice was started at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in April with patients paying 30 per cent less fee. However, the model was not as successful as hoped since the fee structure was almost the same as the one charged at private facilities.
Stipend raised
On August 18 the federal government raised the salaries of junior doctors by over 40 per cent. The government increased the stipend for postgraduate trainees and house officers working at federal government hospitals, mostly in Islamabad. The Ministry of Finance notified an increase from Rs50,000 to Rs73,000 for postgraduate trainees, along with an increase from Rs28,000 to Rs40,000 for house officers.
Pims separation from SZABMU
Pims employees staged a strike on August 22 and boycotted outpatient departments at the hospital over delays in the passage of an amendment bill that sought the hospital’s separation from a newly formed medical university, leaving hundreds of patients to suffer without treatment.
The strike ended three days later after State Minister for Capital Administration and Development Division Minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry assured them that the bill would sail through parliament.
The government also agreed to separate the management of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University and Pims and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif approved the separation. But the amendment bill is still waiting for parliamentary approval.
46 new hospitals
On August 26, PM Sharif approved plans for building new hospitals across Pakistan by the federal government. Of the new hospitals, three were planned to be established in Islamabad.
Discovery of 30 genes
On September 7 good news came when a group of Pakistani researchers discovered some 30 genes causing mental retardation in the local population. The landmark discovery was made by a team of 12 researchers at SZABMU, working in collaboration with scientists from the Netherlands and the US.
New council, new policies at PMDC
A new executive council took charge at the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council this year after elections in December 2015. The new set-up in October introduced a central induction policy for medical colleges to maintain merit and curb corruption in private medical colleges. But the policy was challenged in courts by private colleges.
WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM MUDASSIR RAJA IN RAWALPINDI
Published in The Express Tribune, January 1st, 2017.
1713853507-0/MalalaHilary-(2)1713853507-0-270x192.webp)
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ