Daily Times

The Punjab Healthcare Commission on Thursday directed all private healthcare establishments to refer suspected cases of monkeypox to the selected public sector hospitals instead of admitting such patients In continuation to the directions issued earlier, the HCEs have been directed to ensure that they can identify the suspected cases of monkeypox. They have also been instructed to make sure that on the identification of such cases, they will immediately refer less than 15-year-old patients to the Children’s Hospital and above 15 years to the Lahore General Hospital. It is pertinent to mention here that the PHC had already shared comprehensive definitions of suspected, probable and confirmed cases of monkeypox, along with the reporting mechanism, as issued by the Directorate of General Health Services Punjab. Moreover, the respective administrations of the private HCEs have also been directed to report the suspected, probable and confirmed cases of monkeypox to the district health authority concerned or on the 1033 helpline. The Commission has sought strict adherence to the directions.