Qureshi wrongly fed on corona situation, says Yasmin

MULTAN: Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has said that some people wrongly fed Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi about the corona situation in the Multan Nishtar hospital. Addressing a press conference at Circuit House here on Tuesday, she said that some people sitting on a court stay were conspiring against the ministry and they negatively fed Shah Mehmood Qureshi. "Shah Mehmood Qureshi is our respectable leader and we are ready to pay many visits on his wish", she said, adding that neither the Nishtar Hospital ventilators were shifted to Tayyip Erdogan Hospital, nor the hospital was facing equipment shortage.

While presenting a detailed preview over the corona situation, she said that at least 48,000 health professionals, including 15,000 doctors and 28,000 nurses, were fighting against corona in the province.

The corona positive cases in Punjab were 4, 227 and majority of the cases were those having travel history, she added.

The Lahore district ranks at top in corona confirmed cases reached at 635 followed by Rawalpindi 175, Gujarat 164, Hafizabad 11 and Narowal five, she informed.

The pilgrims returned from Iran and Tablighi congregation participants were in the majority among the confirmed corona cases, she disclosed. More than 1,800 pilgrims and Tableeghi Jamaat members had been quarantined, she told.

The Punjab minister said that 30 confirmed corona positive patients were under treatment at Nishtar hospital. The hospitalisation of the suspects had been extended to 4,000 in public hospitals and 28,000 had been quarantine, she said. She added that 26 doctors were tested negative out of 27 at Nishtar hospital.

The coronavirus was lethal but its transmission was very fast, she said. Total 2,082 corona testing kits were provided at Nishtar hospital while all the doctors were provided N-95 masks and enough stock was available at the hospital to meet the needs of doctors, she informed. The Nishtar hospital had conducted d 3,608 corona tests while 19 corona patients were critical in Punjab, she added.

The Punjab minister said that 140 areas in Punjab were completely lockdown. The government was going to conduct corona tests of all the residents in the areas where the corona suspect would be found, she told.

The minister said that 19 corona patients were critical in Punjab while 700 had been recovered from corona. Seven patients were placed on ventilators, she revealed.

She said that the strength of corona tests had been enhanced to 5,000. The corona tests of 3,800 medical professionals, Darul Amaan staffers would be conducted in Punjab in phases, she told.

While presenting details of the PPEs provided to the Multan Nishtar hospital, she said that the PPEs, including Tavek Suits 9,186, N-95 masks with filter 3,725, N-95 masks without filter 2,571, face shields 155, googles 543, Vinyl examination gloves 292,080, surgical face masks 85,020, hand sanitisers 2,724, shoe covers 46,211, disposable caps 142,594 and waterproof aprons 682. When Dr Yasmin Rashid was asked that doctors were demanding her resignation as she had failed to deliver in the health sector, the minister stopped her press conference and left.