CM approves dengue control programme

Karachi

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah on Thursday approved a three-year Rs274 million dengue prevention and control programme, for the first time in Sindh.

Gathering data from all public and private hospitals, establishing isolation wards in all government hospitals, installation of eight cell separator machines in tertiary care hospitals, provision of dengue kits and platelet mega units to all government hospitals were tasks directed to be covered under the programme. The decision was announced by Qaim while presiding over a meeting held at the CM House.

Secretary health Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo, briefing the attendees on the number of dengue cases and deaths reported since 2010 to date in the province, informed that a total of 17,039 cases had been reported, of which 106 died.

"The health department took concrete steps and launched an awareness drive, in 2012 when only 731 cases with four deaths were reported from Sindh, which signalled towards a 0.5 percent fatality ratio from 1.6 percent in 2011.”

In 2013 the number of dengue cases increased to 5,970 with 32 deaths, however, the fatality ratio remained the same; in 2014 though the number of dengue cases came down to 1,276 but since 16 deaths were reported the ratio of fatality remained the same.

In 2015 the number of cases increased to 3,692 of which 11 patients were reported to have died - the fatality ratio decreased to 0.2 percent.

However, in 2016, 217 cases had been reported to date but no deaths had occurred - 132 of the patients had to be admitted in hospitals, whereas 85 were treated in OPDs (out-patient departments). The DPCP would from the next year be a part of the annual development programme (ADP) and would be operated on a higher level.    

120 schemes launched

Vowing to eradicate dengue from the province, Sindh Health Minister Jam Mehtab Dahar, while speaking at the meeting, said the health department was engaged in 120 development schemes, for Rs13 billion; out of the total schemes, 86 were ongoing while 34 new ones were added.

He claimed the projects would be completed by the end of the fiscal year (June 2016). 

Asking officials of the planning and development departments to keep a strict check on the projects’ completion, the minister said government was spending the public’s money for the welfare of the masses, therefore the should be properly utilised.