PESHAWAR: Fearing an outbreak of the infectious disease, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Department has established 437 isolation beds in 18 districts of the province for suspected coronavirus patients
Also, another suspected patient of coronavirus was reported from Swabi district on Thursday, raising the number of such patients to seven in KP so far. KP Director General Health Services Dr Tahir Nadeem had devised a strategy to closely monitor the situation arising from coronavirus and take precautionary measures by establishing isolation units in the province.
The DG Health office said there was no positive case of coronavirus in the province and all the seven patients admitted to hospitals in the six districts had only symptoms similar to the disease.
One each suspected patient was admitted from Bajaur, Lower Dir, Mardan, Swat and Peshawar while Swabi reported three patients. Swabi had earlier reported two patients but another suspected patient was admitted to the hospital from there on Thursday. The Health Department had sent samples of these suspected patients to the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad.
Since the government is fearing an outbreak of the infectious disease, it decided to establish 437 isolation beds for the patients suffering from coronavirus. These beds are allocated in 18 districts of the province, including Abbottabad, Bannu, Buner, Battagram, Mansehra, Swabi, Nowshera and Swat. Besides these districts, the government has selected a 60-bed hospital in Peshawar and reserved 40 beds in five hospitals of the provincial capital for the coronavirus patients.
Meanwhile, Secretary Health Yahya Akhunzada and DG Health Dr Tahir Nadeem visited the Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar and deployed 24 health workers, including doctors and paramedics, for screening passengers arriving from overseas. They would work in three shifts at the airport.
The Health Department established two counters for the screening. It was decided that the Health staff would be available round-the-clock along with an ambulance.
The Health Department will provide pick and drop and meals to its staff at the airport. The Health staff was provided with thermal screening and thermal gun for the screening.
