Dengue control: ‘There shouldn’t be any excuses… you know your job’

Adviser to chief minister on health wants all departments to adhere to SOPs.


Our Correspondent March 05, 2014
Adviser to chief minister on health wants all departments to adhere to SOPs. PHOTO: FILE

LAHORE:


All departments responsible for anti-dengue activities have been directed to ensure that all standard operating procedures are followed.


Presiding over the year’s first cabinet committee meeting on dengue control on Tuesday, Adviser to Chief Minister on Health Khawaja Salman Rafique said that early dengue surveillance, larvaciding and spreading awareness among people were crucial steps in controlling dengue at the very initial stage.

He said there should be no excuses as all officers and workers were quite aware of their duties due to the four years of experience in dengue control.

Parliamentary Secretary for Health Khawaja Imran Nazir, Health Secretary Babar Hayat Tarar, Commissioner Rashid Mehmood Langrial, secretaries and additional secretaries of several departments, health services director general, King Edward Medical University Vice Chancellor Faisal Masood, and several senior Punjab Information Technology Board, Institute Of Public Health and police officials also attended the meeting.

The health secretary said that there had been no dengue case in the Punjab in 2014 so far. He said 120 cases had been reported in Sindh.

He said that sufficient stocks of medicines and chemicals, including deltamathrine and tomiphose (insecticides), were available in the Health Department stores. He said SOPs evolved by the Institute of Public Health experts had been published in the form of a booklet that would be circulated among all provincial departments and district governments.

Rafique was briefed about measures taken to make the anti-dengue drive successful again.

He was told that dengue surveillance activities had already been launched in Lahore, Sheikhupura and several districts where officials feared dengue mosquito breeding. He said he was happy to inform the meeting that no dengue larvae had been found anywhere in these areas.

School Education Secretary Abdul Jabbar Shaheen said that school children had been told to wear full-sleeve shirts throughout the year.

He said a circular had also been issued to the education executive district officers in this regard.

Rafique said he expected all departments to work with a coordinated and focused approach to get the best outcome from their trained human resource.

The parliamentary health secretary said that special attention should be given to junkyards during dengue mosquito larvae surveillance and larvaciding.

The King Edward Medical University VC said that a Dengue Expert Advisory Group had completed training of doctors and nurses in case management and treatment of dengue patients.

Chief Entomologist Waseem Akram said that training modules had been prepared for training of more than 400 master trainers in dengue surveillance, larvaciding, fogging and spraying. He said that these master trainers would train other government officials.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2014.

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