Rawalpindi – Provincial Health Minister, Khawaja Salman Rafique, on Saturday urged the health authority to respond to the prevailing dengue situation with full scale by utilizing all resources and with zero tolerance towards any negligence by the health officials.
He said that controlling dengue is the top priority of the government.
He remarked this while chairing an anti-dengue meeting which was held in the deputy commissioner’s office.
The meeting was attended by MNA Malik Abrar, Focal Persons for Dengue Dr Wasim Akram, Additional Deputy Commissioner Hasan Tariq and other heads of relevant departments.
The minister reviewed the dengue situation in Rawalpindi in detail and directed the officers from relevant departments to go out in the field and perform their duties as a national duty.
“Case response should be immediately covered by IRS spraying and fogging,” he said.
The minister further directed that the surveillance teams should educate the people about measures to prevent dengue.
He informed the meeting that he had arrived in Rawalpindi on the special instructions of CM Maryam Nawaz.
The minister while highlighting the continuity of awareness campaigns stressed that special campaigns should be conducted to create awareness among the people about dengue.
Dr Waseem Akram during the meeting said that a clean sweep should be done by focusing on high-risk union councils.
Focal person on Dengue, Tahira Aurangzeb MNA, on Saturday said thst the Punjab government has fixed Rs. 90. as fee for the dengue tests to maximize health facilities for the people. Strict action will be taken against the laboratories involved in overcharging.
She said this during her visit to dengue wards which have been established in the Holy Family Hospital (HFH). The focal person was accompanied by parliamentarians including Malik Abrar and Parliamentary Secretary Information, Shazia Rizwan.
The focal person urged for the collective efforts to face the difficult time. She directed the relevant departments to display panaflex and banners outside the labs mentioning dengue tests charges.
Earlier during the visit, Tahira Aurangzeb talked to the dengue patients and inquired about the treatment services, responding to which the patients expressed their satisfaction. Lauding the treatment facility being provided by the hospital, the patients thanked CM Maryam Nawaz.
MS Holy Family informed the visiting parliamentarians that 70 percent of patients from Rawalpindi district and 30 percent from other areas were under treatment in HFH.
Later, the parliamentarians visited different laboratories of the city including Al-Khidmat Razi lab, City Lab, Ibn-e-Sina Lab and other labs.
On the other hand, an awareness campaign was organized in Chak Jalal Din, the most dengue affected area of Pothohar Town (Peri Urban). The campaign was directly led and supervised by Dr. Asif Arbab Niazi, CEO Health Authority Rawalpindi, during which citizens were cognised on the prevailing dengue situation.
The campaign started before the Friday prayers in which health workers distributed pumphlets containing dengue SOPs and necessary measures on dengue positivity.
The CEO Health Authority Rawalpindi visited different mosques and addressed the citizens during the Friday sermons. In his addresses he highlighted the causes, symptoms and effects of dengue fever. He further informed people the importance of timely reporting to hospitals in case of finding dengue symptoms in patient.
The CEO appealed to the citizens to follow SOPs devised by the government to prevent and control dengue spread.
He urged them to play their due role and assist the health workers promoting dengue awareness in the fight against dengue.
After the Friday prayers, an anti- dengue walk was conducted in the main bazaars and streets of Chak Jalal Din. The CEO himself led the walk and made announcements regarding ongoing fight against the dengue challenge. Health workers were holding banners written with messages on dengue preventive measures. The participants distributed pumphlets among shopkeepers, students and by-passers.
During the last 24 hours, 107 new positive cases including 65 from Pothohar Town Peri Urban areas where Chak Jalal Din remained the top dengue contributors. The total number of dengue patients reported since January 2024 reached 1847.
According to the details issued by the District Health Authority (DHA) on Saturday, the under treatment patients in various allied hospitals have also increased to 31, crossing the initial capacity of 300 beds. However, the beds availability has been increased to 600 by the government in various hospitals.
