The Abbasi Shaheed Hospital under the administrative control of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has started providing free COVID-19 testing facility to the people of Karachi.
This was told in a meeting on the affairs of the hospital held on Sunday, which was chaired by KMC Metropolitan Commissioner Dr Syed Saifur Rehman. According to a statement, the meeting was told that around 320 tests for COVID-19 had been conducted at the hospital since June 27, with the results of 287 tests handed over to the suspected patients on the next day.
The metropolitan commissioner also visited the newly constructed wards at the health facility for the coronavirus patients. Among those who availed the COVID-19 test facility at the hospital, 78 or 27 per cent tested positive while 209 or 73 per cent tested negative for COVID-19, he said.
He added that in addition to the testing facility, Abbasi Shaheed Hospital would also provide free treatment to the patients infected with the novel coronavirus. The meeting discussed various aspects for the care of COVID-19 patients. The metropolitan commissioner also thanked the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) chairman for providing necessary medical equipment and special patient beds to the hospital, which would enable its staff to provide better care to the patients.
He said serving the patients round the clock was not an easy task but the doctors and paramedics were able to do so due to the great humanitarian spirit of their profession.