HIV outbreak in Ratodero taluka of Larkana: Full-scale drive against quacks launched in Sindh

KARACHI: In the wake of a latest HIV outbreak in the Ratodero taluka of Larkana, where 663 people including 543 children were found infected with the lethal viral infection since April 25, 2019, Sindh Health Care Commission and the provincial health department have decided to launch a joint, full scale drive against quacks across the province and in this regard, the health department would provide required workforce and resources to the health commission, authorities said on Friday.

Official said the decision to launch the joint drive was taken at a meeting, jointly chaired by Director General Health Sindh Dr. Masood Solangi and Chief Executive Officer Sindh Health Care Commission Dr. Minhaj Qidwai, held in the office of DG Health. The meeting, which was also attended by Director Anti-Quackery Dr. Ayaz Mustafa and District Health Officers. It was decided that the DG Health would share a list collected from all DHOs to SHCC with the names of the quacks and also those doctors who have allowed their facilities, qualifications to be used for quackery practices.The DHOs, local administration and law enforcement agencies would coordinate with the SHCC for taking legal action against quacks. It is to mentioned here that SHCC has introduced a mobile application in the name of AUTHENTIK to confirm the authentication of PMDC certificate.

In the meanwhile, Sindh Health Care Commission (SHCC) in its action against the quacks claimed to have closed down around 830 healthcare establishments in Larkana, Mirpurkhas, Tando Adam and adjoining areas and announced to widen their crackdown against quacks in all the five divisions of Sindh.

“The number of such clinics, labs and facilities sealed on daily basis is increasing,” said Dr. Ayaz Mustafa, Director Anti-Quackery of SHCC. The SHCC officials also claimed to have confiscated several hundred thousand more used syringes from the healthcare establishments from Mirpurkhas and Tando Adam, saying business of hospital waste, especially reused syringes are emerging as a major source of income for quacks who are providing these syringes and needles to others in the province as well as to drug users.

On the other hand, teams of dental directorate of the DG Sindh also continued inspecting dozens of dental clinics run by quacks in Larkana and adjoining talukas and reported them to SHCC, which sent them their teams to seal them, Director General Health Sindh Dr. Masood Solangi said.

The irony, according to SHCC authorities is a majority of the clinics and healthcare establishments being run by the quacks are in the names of registered medical practitioners, who are mostly government employees but have rented out their clinics or even their documents to quacks, who are playing with the lives of people without any fear of law.

“We have discovered another form of quackery, which we have declared as rent-seeking quackery where a registered medical practitioner, usually an employee of the health departments, rents out his name, private clinic or even his document to a quack, who uses the name of the registered medical practitioner to see patients and prescribe them medicines, inject them with IV medications and solutions,” Ayaz Mustafa said.

“In these circumstances and keeping in view the case of a doctor who himself was found infected with HIV, we have recommended the Sindh Health Care Commission to screen all the staff of healthcare establishments for HIV, Hepatitis B and C and other infectious diseases as it is highly likely that a large number of these people could also be carriers and would be transmitting the lethal diseases to their patients knowingly or unknowingly,” Dr. Mustafa added.