The health department, government of Sindh, has made a special contingency plan to cope with the expected heatwave emergency situation in coming summer season throughout Karachi, it was learnt on Tuesday.
An official of the health department told PPI that the health department had decided to start training of doctors and other medical staff at district level on urgent basis to treat heat-stroke patients effectively. The trained health practitioners and others staff would be deployed in emergency departments of the public sector hospitals. Besides, availability of life-saving drugs, additional beds in hospitals, establishment of heat-stroke relief centers and presence of doctors would be ensured to cope with expected heat stroke emergency in months of May or June.
Necessary directives have already been issued to district health officers, town health officers and medical superintendents of government hospitals to make necessary arrangements for training of doctors and other staff on urgent basis before the start of summer season. Health Services Karachi Director Dr Shakoor Abbasi informed that a high-level meeting was held under the chair of provincial health minister. He said the meeting was also attended by DHOs, heads of public sector hospitals and deputy commissioners. He said during a meeting a special contingency plan was made to deal with the heat-stroke patients in public hospitals. It was decided that the presence of doctors, medical staff in accident and emergency departments and availability of lifesaving drugs would be ensured during summer season. He said heads of public sectors hospitals and DHOs had already been directed to start preparations to avert any possible medical emergency like situation in the city. It is pertinent to mention here that severe heat wave with temperatures as high as 49 °C (120 °F) struck Pakistan in June 2015. It caused deaths of about 1,500 people from dehydration and sunstroke, mostly in Sindh province and its capital city, Karachi, while thousands others were rushed to hospitals for emergency treatment.
