Sindh health dept dismisses efforts of Covid-19 focal person

Letter terms Dr Dharejo’s contributions ‘fallacious’ <br /> and ‘dubious’

HYDERABAD: The Sindh health department appears to have dismissed the contributions of Sindh coronavirus focal person Dr Muhammad Bakhsh Dharejo to the pandemic efforts, terming them ‘fallacious’ and ‘dubious.’

In a letter to the Services, General Administration and Cooperation Department (SGA&CD) concerning the conferment of Pakistan Civil Awards on Wednesday, the health department has raised questions about Dr Dharejo.

The names of four doctors rendering their services during the pandemic had been proposed to the health department by the SGA&CD for feedback on May 19. Among those recommended for the award were Aga Khan University Hospital’s (AKUH) Dr Faisal Mehmood, World Health Organisation (WHO) Sindh’s Dr Sara Zuberi Salman, Indus Hospital CEO Dr Abdul Bari and Dr Dharejo.

“The contributions as stated by Dr Dharejo in the nomination form are fallacious and dubious as the following points of explanation indicate,” reads the letter written by chief technical officer Dr Shabnum Karim.

According to the letter, contrary to the contributions stated in the nomination form, Dr Dharejo was not involved in the planning and strategic development of Sindh’s Covid-19 plan. “It was done by the provincial task force headed by the chief minister, which also included various public health specialists. He [Dr Dharejo] was assigned the duty of recording minutes of the meeting,” it read.

With regard to the guidelines, standard operating procedures and health advisories, Dr Karim stated that these were formulated by the WHO, AKUH, National Institute of Health, Sindh Health Care Commission and the health department’s public health wing. The provincial taskforce had approved the guidelines, SOPs and advisories before they were issued, she added.

The call centre system, meanwhile, was said to be developed by a health department team led by Dr Sikandar Memon, to answer questions about the virus, while the hotspot mapping was done by data analysts under the supervision of another health official.

The letter went on to state that the coronavirus testing capacity was enhanced on the recommendations of a committee notified by the Sindh chief secretary, while those in charge of the respective laboratories also played a vital role.

Further, wrote Dr Karim, the logistics management was handled by the Expanded Programme for Immunisation and Emergency Operations Centre coordinator. Listing these objections, the letter concluded that the health department did not recommend Dr Dharejo for the civil award.

While Dr Dharejo could not be contacted for his version, a health official associated with him claimed that he neither knew that his name was being proposed for the award nor had he filled out any nomination form. He added that the health department’s feedback was a denial of Dr Dharejo’s contributions and seemed to be a result of a personal grudge.

“We know that Dr Dharejo never filled out any nomination form for the award. Dr Karim’s letter itself appears fallacious in a way because it attributes the form and its content to the focal person which is not true,” he said.

In the recommendation, Dr Karim has given the highest marks to Dr Mehmood and the second highest to Dr Salman. While no marks are mentioned for Dr Abdul Bari, the letter pointed out that he received the Hilal-e-Imtiaz in 2019, rendering him ineligible.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 21^st, 2020.