He said, she said: Dengue under control, or maybe not

Punjab Health dept, Rawalpindi officials unable to agree on death tolls or positive cases.

ISLAMABAD:

The Punjab government claims’ to fight against dengue on a war footing seems to be a distant dream, as data gathered by the provincial and district health departments on deaths and the number of people testing positive are chockfull of contradictions.

Due to this, it is difficult for the government to work out a comprehensive plan to take prompt action to control the disease, which has seemingly become an epidemic.

According to the data gathered by The Express Tribune from the online database of the Punjab Health Department, the total number of dengue fever positive cases reported in Rawalpindi district since January 2013 is 457 with no deaths.

On the other hand, according to District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Khalid Randhawa, a total of 425 positive cases of dengue fever have been reported in Rawalpindi this year, with one death. Meanwhile, according to a source in same department, a total of 440 cases and two deaths have been reported at the three major public hospitals of the city alone.



“The situation is completely under control, and due to the change in the weather, there has been a decline in the number of dengue fever cases in the city,” said Khalid Randhawa.

Talking to The Express Tribune, an official working with the Punjab health department who wished not to be named said misleading statistics regarding dengue fever are causing major setbacks to the efforts underway to control the disease.

“It is irresponsible of the government. Dengue fever has now become endemic. Timely reporting of cases and deaths tells which area has been worst hit by the disease and needs immediate action,” said the official.

There is a need to analyse the data every day to control its spread, but unfortunately most officials do not bother to do this, he said, adding that it is the media which is playing an effective role by providing the number of deaths and positive cases from various public and private hospitals.

The official said that some of the concerned officials at various levels provide a false picture of the actual situation and claim things are under their control just to avoid the wrath of their bosses.

The official was of the view that if all the health departments at all levels starts reporting the cases on time instead of hiding them, they can save many people becoming victims of the disease and can also prevent its outbreak in the coming years.

The Express Tribune was unable to contact Punjab Health Secretary Hassan Iqbal despite multiple attempts.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 5^th, 2013.