PESHAWAR: The dengue virus on Wednesday took first life this year and infected more than 200 other people mostly from Khyber district where the disease has reportedly become an epidemic by infecting dozens of people, according to government officials.
The virus in Khyber district allegedly spread due to negligence of the district administration and Fata Secretariat.
According to sources, the office of Director Health Services (DHS) in the Fata Secretariat had reportedly refused taking any support from the provincial Health Department after the merger of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The patient was identified as Shagufta, 50, the wife of Laiq Shah belonging to Jamrud subdivision in Khyber. She was diagnosed with dengue fever on August 26 and brought to the Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH) in Peshawar on August 27.
The woman was discharged from hospital on September 3 as her platelet count was 40,000. She was having co morbidity of Diabetes Mellitus and Hypertension. She lost her life on Wednesday.
According to health officials, around 200 patients have been diagnosed with dengue virus in Khyber district so far. “The patient was discharged while being in a critical condition. Not differentiating or recognising critical stage can lead to adverse outcomes,” said an official of the Health Department on condition of anonymity.
He said that in the absence of any co-morbidity fluid overloads leading to pulmonary edema and eventual acute heart failure could not be ruled out. In Peshawar, 64 patients have tested positive for dengue fever.
The chief secretary seems to have taken notice of suffering of the patients in Khyber district and rest of Fata and issued a notification directing the Director Health Services (DHS) to report to the secretary health onwards.
According to sources, two months ago when Fata was officially merged with KP, the provincial Health Department convened a meeting of all the district health officers in Peshawar with to improve health services and streamline all affairs of the health sector in Fata.
However, the additional chief secretary Fata and DHS allegedly resisted this move of the Health Department.
After merger, the seven tribal districts should have been part of 32 districts and health implementation units of KP. “Principally speaking all programmatic matters and progress should be reported to DHIS of DGHS KP. However administrative matters would be dealt with by health secretariat and DGHS within respective jurisdictions,” opined the health department’s official.
He said though the chief secretary brought the DHS under the provincial Health Department, the only solution was making them bound to reporting to DGHS.
“Actually monitoring mechanisms of programme activities, disease pattern and progress on achievement is in the hand of bigger setup of KP Health Directorate, the health system, provisions and service delivery in the tribal districts may not be effectively monitored nor the DGHS’s due role could be established there,” he said.