Efforts afoot to contain coronavirus: Dr Yasmin Rashid

Health department seeks Rs11b fund to contain Covid-19

LAHORE: Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has said 78 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Punjab. As many as 64 cases were confirmed at public hospitals while 14 were confirmed at private labs.

She was addressing a press conference at the CM office where senior officials from the health department were also present.

Dr Rashid said efforts were being made to contain the virus and she would continue to update the media about the situation. “So far, we have checked 384 samples of people who came to hospitals with coronavirus symptoms. She said among 78 cases in the province, 60 patients came from Iran as we tested them and quarantined them after their tests for coronavirus were found positive,” she said.

Dr Rashid said the health department has got the samples of 220 patients that came from abroad. Five patients of coronavirus at Dera Ghazi Khan was shifted to Recep Tayyip Erdogan Hospital.

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“At Mayo Hospital were are providing the best treatment to the coronavirus patients and their tests are being conducted. Patients have been kept in isolation wards,” she said. “In the case of a negative test for the virus, we will allow patients to go to their homes.”

She said all facilities were provided to the medical teams, while we have the facility of 500 rooms to deal with the virus. She said that three hospitals including PKLI, Recep Tayyip Erdogan Hospital and Urology Hospital, Rawalpindi have been was reserved for coronavirus patients while a request has been sent to the CM Punjab to establish a 1000-room camp hospital.

“We have closed offices and after 10:00 pm shops will be closed while we advise people to stay at homes.”

Meanwhile, the provincial health department has sought Rs11 billion from the department of finance for arrangements to contain the spread of coronavirus. The finance department initially issued a grant of Rs236 million, while the recommendation for the release of Rs11 billion is also under consideration. The first meeting of a steering committee, chaired by Punjab Finance Minister Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht, was held to review the impact on the economy of coronavirus. Finance Minister Bakht said an initial grant of Rs236 million has been issued to the Primary Healthcare Department for preventive arrangements against coronavirus.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 20^th, 2020.