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PMA to start rabies vaccination at its centres in Garden, FB Area

By Our Correspondent
November 28, 2019

The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has expressed serious concern over the growing dog-bite incidents and demanded that the authorities take immediate steps to deal with the issue on an emergency basis.

Any citizen, men, women and children should not suffer because of dog-bites and no Pakistani should face traumatic death because of this condition, said PMA Karachi representatives, including Dr Khalil Mukaddam, Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, Dr Ismail Memon and Dr Shershah Syed, as they addressed a news conference at the PMA House on Wednesday.

They said in a majority of the dog-bite cases, the victims are usually unable to receive basic and emergency medical aid, adding that usually such patients need surgical cleaning of wound, suturing of traumatic tissue if required and vaccination against rabies if the dog is rabid but unfortunately in a majority of cases, the status of dog is usually not known and as a preventive measure, the victim should always be vaccinated.

Praising some public sector health facilities, the PMA office-bearers said it is remarkable that the Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) and Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) are providing vaccination to dog-bite victims every day as per the recommended dosage of the World Health Organisation.

The Indus Hospital in Korangi and Aga Khan Hospital are also providing vaccination to needy patients, they said, adding that 40 to 50 patients are being treated every day at the CHK and JPMC while the Indus Hospital is treating 10 to 15 such victims on a daily basis.

The PMA representatives maintained that dog-bite incidents are also very common in Larkana, Sukkur, Nawabshah, Mirpurkhas, Thatta, Jacobabad and other rural parts of Sindh.

“We demand that where the government is providing vaccine after dog-bite, the emphasis should be on eradication of rabies virus from the community,” they said, adding that all the municipal authorities should start a campaign for peaceful extinction of rabid dogs and regularisation of street and pet dogs. The authorities should have a permanent system regarding monitoring of animals in the community.

They said the PMA is also starting free vaccination services from 12 noon to 8pm at the PMA House on Garden Road and at the PMA’s Karachi Central Hospital in FB Area with the help of a US-based Karachi citizen.

They also appealed to all the media persons to create awareness regarding rabid dogs and complications associated with the rabies. “We also hope that religious leaders and imams of mosque will help in this campaign.”