Ebola virus: Sharif for screening passengers at airports

‘Those responsible for Awais’s death due to dengue fever will be taken to task’

LAHORE:

Necessary arrangements should be made at airports to screen passengers for Ebola virus, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Friday.

He was presiding over a high-level meeting to consider steps necessary to prevent an outbreak of Ebola virus in the province. He directed relevant departments and institutions to remain fully alert in view of the threat.



A specialist doctor from the World Health Organisation gave the participants of the meeting a detailed briefing on the Ebola virus and preventative measures that could be taken to prevent an outbreak.

The chief minister issued instructions to set up a steering committee headed by the chief secretary. He said the committee would submit its recommendations regarding preventative measures against Ebola virus, public awareness campaigns, coordination with the federal government and clinical management.

While presiding over another meeting to review the implementation of the anti-dengue plan, Sharif ordered immediate action against those responsible for the death of 26-year-old Awais, who was suffering from dengue fever and had been admitted to Services Hospital.

The chief minister said those who had been negligent in treating Awais would be taken to task.

He directed all relevant departments and institutions to ensure the complete implementation of standard operating procedures in curbing the dengue fever outbreak and warned that no dereliction of duty would be tolerated.

He urged the Health Department to work efficiently to monitor the condition of dengue patients admitted to hospitals in the province and ordered the best possible treatment for them.

The chief minister also reviewed steps taken to curb the outbreak of dengue fever in Rawalpindi division. He addressed lawmakers and district administration members through video link and told them to cooperate with the departments in controlling the epidemic.

The chief minister said, “Nothing is more important than human life... all departments and institutions must work in coordination with each other to defeat dengue fever.”

He said public awareness campaigns must be launched to teach citizens about preventative measures against dengue. He urged lawmakers and elected representatives to take the lead in this regard.

The chief minister also issued instructions for a third-party audit of steps taken against dengue fever and said that a committee should be constituted to improve the present anti-dengue plan.

He said committees should review the whole system and submit recommendations. They would be used to introduce reforms for further improvement, he said.

Sharif expressed indignation over the rise in the number of dengue fever patients in Rawalpindi and the reported non-implementation of preventative measures there.

He reprimanded the relevant authorities of Rawalpindi and directed them to pay special attention to monitoring the situation there.

He said even though progress had been in curtailing the number of cases reported from the division, there was room for much improvement. He said there was a lot lacking in the implementation of preventive measures against dengue fever. He said provincial ministers, elected representatives and the administration should work hard and show results.

Adviser to Chief Minister on Health Khawaja Salman Rafiq, the chief secretary, the additional chief secretary, the health secretary and local government, Dr Wasim Akram, a dengue specialist, Institute of Public Health Dean Moaz Ahmad, the Lahore Division commissioner and the King Edward Medical University vice chancellor attended the meeting. Provincial Minister for Labour Raja Ashfaq Sarwar, several lawmakers, the commissioner and DCO of Rawalpindi Division participated in the conference via video link.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 18^th, 2014.