KARACHI: The federal government is giving priority to coronavirus and cancer diseases as COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest public health challenge the world has faced in recent times, according to new economic survey 2021 of Pakistan.
According to the survey, the pandemic was confirmed to have reached Pakistan on 26 February 2020, when the first patient in Karachi tested positive while returning from Iran. Since then, the pandemic has spread through foreign and domestic transfusion. However, due to timely measures taken by the government in collaboration with provinces, the outbreak has so far been prevented from getting worse.
The government has constituted a high-level National Coordination Committee (NCC) headed by the Prime Minister that evaluates the evolving situation on day to day basis to effectively curb the spread of the virus in the country. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and NHSRC have leading roles in combating the spread of a pandemic.
A Command and Control Center has also been established to ensure effective coordination among the federal and provincial governments to control COVID-19. The disease outbreak information management system has been strengthened, and a comprehensive hospital information management system has been ensured as the basis for the early detection of outbreaks.
Disease surveillance and Response Units (DSRU) has also been strengthened at the district level and collaborated with Emergency Operations Centers (EOC) at the provincial level. Hospitals and laboratories in the major cities have been designated to collect the samples from suspected cases on bio-safety and bio-security standards. Quarantine facilities have been established all over the country to prevent the spread of the pandemic. The availability of relevant supplies, PPEs, and lab agents for safe collection, storage, packing, and transportation of samples from the designated hospitals to the National Reference Lab/ designated is being ensured.
The Government of Sindh passed directives to the provincial health department to begin COVID-19 case mapping to contain the outbreak of disease. Orders were also given to improve sampling arrangements, upon which 18 vehicles of the Indus Hospital were dedicated to collecting samples from homes. Pakistan Army helped to set up a 10,000-bed field hospital at Karachi’s Expo Centre to isolate and treat confirmed patients. All expenses for its establishment were born by the provincial government of Sindh. The Government of Sindh established an isolation and quarantine centre at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical College in Karachi, which also provided free tests of suspected cases with results in 8 hours of sample submission.
The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has appointed at least 1,300 new doctors on contractual basis across the province to help contain the spread of COVID-19. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission also approved the recruitment of 635 more doctors to join the province’s health force. The provincial government approved Rs 32 billion stimulus economic package to provide relief to the masses and the business community amid the Coronavirus crisis. The provincial government had ramped up its testing capacity with 500 new diagnostics kits and distribution of equipment and supplies,
Including oxygen concentrators, cardiac monitors, infusion pumps, dialysis catheter, among all districts of the province.
Government of Balochistan established a Quarantine Centre at Bolan Medical College Quetta, and 10-bed isolation wards at Quetta’s Fatima Jinnah Chest Hospital and Sheikh Zayed Hospital, while a functional laboratory set up in Quetta. Thermal guns and 231 ambulances were made available in bordering districts with Iran and Afghanistan. An emergency response team headed by Director General, Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), was established. Screening of pilgrims and the business community who entered Pakistan from Iran was commenced while an emergency control room established at the PDMA office. The survey says Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) has given high priority to the application of nuclear technology in the health sector, especially utilizing radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer.
According to the survey, since the establishment of the first nuclear medical center of PAEC in Karachi’s Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, currently, there are 18 operational Atomic Energy Cancer Hospitals (AECHs) dedicated to serving poor cancer patients not only in major cities but also in remote areas like DI Khan, Bannu, Swat, Nawabshah. They are diligently working to provide the latest and comprehensive diagnostic and treatment facilities to cancer patients irrespective of the stage of the disease.
AECHs are operated by skilled teams of more than 2,500 professionals, including doctors, scientists, engineers, paramedical, technical, and other support staff. Construction of another AECH at Gilgit Baltistan is in progress, which is expected to be operational by mid of 2020 while work has
Been started for the establishment of three more such centers in Mardan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Balochistan.
Management of cancer patients requires a multidisciplinary approach and is an expensive affair. Nuclear Medicine and Oncology Division of PAEC is working on establishing a cancer registry representing data from all 18 AECH.
In addition to the management of patients, Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) has been started at AECH Lahore. Commissioning of new LINAC installed at AECH Larkana has been completed. Gamma Camera for AECH Gilgit has been purchased. Five Co-60 radiotherapy machines have been purchased for AECHs Islamabad. Provision of teaching and training facilities is ensured for about 500 postgraduate medical students/fellows in fields of nuclear medicine, radiation and mobile breast care clinics for screening.
Cancer has been considered one of the deadliest types of NCDs, and the number of cases is rising in the country. Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission’s (PAEC) 18 Cancer Hospitals in four provinces are already providing diagnosis and treatment facilities to cancer patients. Recently efforts were made to establish the cancer registry at the national level with the support of other stakeholders at the national and provincial levels, the report concluded.