Punjab govt releases funds for dengue control

The Punjab government released funds to purchase machines for dengue sprays beside providing 200 kilograms of medicines each to all town committees to eradicate dengue in the city, said Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday. The CM, while presiding over a meeting of the Special Emergency Committee set up for the eradication of dengue virus, said general practitioners should be contacted for free medical examination of dengue virus patients and psychiatrists should be deputed in the hospitals for counseling of patients and their attendants.
The Punjab CM said all resources were being utilised for the eradication of dengue virus and the provision of medical facilities to patients. In hospitals, additional staff and machinery had been provided for the purpose. He also ordered immediate assigning of duties to provincial ministers for reviewing steps taken to eradicate dengue virus in various districts. He said private hospitals would provide free medical facilities to dengue patients and laboratories would provide low-cost test facilities. He directed the committee comprising elected representatives hold talks with laboratory owners and hospitals’ administrations to formulate a policy as early as possible.
Shahbaz said all possible measures to control dengue virus were in place and an awareness campaign against the epidemic had been launched to include all segments of the society. Under the campaign, seminars were being held at town level and informative programmes were being organised at schools, colleges and various community centers. A special helpline had also been setup for the guidance of dengue patients. The CM said more than 200 people including those from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh got guidance from he helpline on the first day of it launch.
Shahbaz said the government had decided to import medicines and equipment from India and Sri Lanka for dengue elimination on emergency basis. He ordered the health secretary to contact the Indian high commissioner immediately and import the World Health Organization-approved medicines. Two years ago, the disease had spread in Sri Lanka and around 35,000 people got infected but they overcame the epidemic. The Sri Lankan government was now cooperating with Pakistan in dengue eradication and had promised to provide staff, equipment, technical assistance and medicines. The CM thanked the Sri Lankan government for extending help.
Shahbaz said the process of recruitment of work-charge employees for spraying and fogging should be completed at the earliest and Chambers of Commerce and Industries philanthropists and non-governmental organizations must also be included in the campaign. He said the provision of treatment facilities to the dengue virus patients through mobile health units should also be considered. He ordered stern action against elements involved in price-hike of mosquito-repellants.
He appreciated the efforts of government and private hospitals and laboratories in campaign against dengue. He also commended the spraying and fumigation teams. He thanked Punjab Information Technology Board Chairman Dr Javaid Abdul Ghani, Allama Iqbal Medical College Principal Dr Javaid Akram and Health Secretary Jahenzeb Khan for their help in the campaign.
On the CM’s request, army had also setup medical camps in the cantonment area and Defense Housing Authority and a separate unit was established in the Combined Military Hospital to supplement the efforts being made to provide medical facilities to dengue patients.
The Town Committee chairmen informed the meeting about the details of steps taken for dengue elimination in their respective towns. Health Secretary Jahanzaib Khan told the meeting that a total of 2,994 dengue cases had been reported in the province, of which, a large number was present in Lahore. He said additional machines had been installed in Ganga Ram Hospital and Lahore General Hospital to facilitate patients. The meeting was also informed about the sprays in schools and distribution of pamphlets among people at important roads and places.
CM devises dengue campaign: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif said on Sunday that a special campaign had been initiated to raise awareness among people regarding dengue. While distributing informative pamphlets among people, with several male and female students from different institutions at Model Town Mor, he said that teams comprising students were distributing informative pamphlets for the guidance of the citizens and seminars and discussions were being held at the Muhallah level. The CM said that dengue would be controlled through effective strategy and planning, experts’ guidance and the cooperation of the people. Shahbaz Sharif said that all possible medical facilities were being provided to the dengue patients in the hospitals and all emergency committees in the towns were also fully equipped to carry out fogging and fumigation and taking adequate measures to eradicate dengue completely. He said that fumigating houses to eradicate dengue mosquitoes was highly important and should prove to be effective. The CM said that a coordinated programme had been chalked out for this purpose. He said importing medicines from India and Sri Lanka was also being made possible. Responding to a media representative regarding the provision of free medical facilities to dengue patients in private hospitals in this time of crisis, he said that besides government hospitals, free medical facilities would also be provided to dengue patients in private hospitals. Shahbaz Sharif said that a committee comprising elected representatives was devising a strategy to allow free dengue treatment in private hospitals by negotiating with the owners of private hospitals. He said that all segments of the society including NGOs and private hospitals were being included in the on-going campaign for the complete elimination of dengue. He said it was our collective responsibility to come forward in this hour of trial and contribute towards serving ailing humanity. He congratulated the students for being perceptive enough to be a part of the campaign against dengue and said that we needed to stand united as a nation to curb the dengue menace. The CM requested the people receiving the pamphlets to communicate the information to their relatives and friends so that everyone was well-informed of the disease and was able to coordinate towards combating the epidemic.