Fearing Covid-19, staff stay away from BHUs

Bangash claims high recovery of patients

PESHAWAR:

With several medical professionals succumbing to the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), the fear of catching the pandemic virus has caused the attendance of staff, including doctors, at healthcare facilities throughout the province to plummet drastically.

The Express Tribune has learnt that the attendance of doctors at the Basic Health Units (BHUs) and Rural Health Centres (RHCs) across the province has fallen drastically.

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government had worked to improve the health care sector of the province, ensuring that at least 74 per cent of vacant seats in BHUs and 93 per cent of vacant seats in RHCs are filled.

But since the onset of the pandemic, the attendance of doctors and other relevant healthcare staff has fallen.

The attendance of healthcare staff in BHUs until June this year was just 60 per cent, while at RHCs it was relatively better at 89 per cent.

In BHUs and RHCs, the average attendance of medical staff was around 80 per cent.

The attendance ratio at the basic healthcare facilities in Peshawar, Lower and Upper Kohistan, Buner, Swat, Nowshera, Malakand and Mardan was over 90 per cent.

In Swabi, Battagram, Karak, Kolai Palas, Lakki Marwat around 90 per cent medical staff attended duties in these healthcare facilities.

However, the presence of medical staff at the BHUs and RHCs in Bannu, Chitral, Shangla, Kohat, Mansehra, Haripur, Lower Dir, Abbottabad, Kohat was around 80 per cent.

The ratio of staff attending BHUs and RHCs in Lakki Marwat, Toorghar, Dera Ismail Khan, Upper Dir, Tank and Hangu districts was around 70 per cent until June this year.Covid-19 recovery rate rises to 71%

The recovery rate for Covid-19 patients in the province has increased to 71 per cent while the ratio of positive cases has fallen from 25 to 15 per cent.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 18^th, 2020.