Daily Times

LAHORE: Another swine flu patient died in Sheikh Zayed Hospital in the provincial metropolis on Thursday, bringing the death toll to three during the current year.

At least 32 swine flu patients, including Dr Ahad of Jinnah Hospital, are under treatment in different government and private hospitals of the city. Seven new patients showing symptoms of swine flu have been admitted in various hospitals during the last 24 hours.

According to details, Muhammad Munir, 47, a resident of Multan Road, had been admitted to the hospital for last few days. His blood samples were sent to the National Institute of Health in Islamabad. The test confirmed the presence of Swine flu. His condition deteriorated and he died on Thursday.

Earlier, two swine flu patients had died, included 48-year-old Ghulam Sarwar in Jinnah Hospital and 72-year-old Rashida Bibi at Farooq Hospital.

The hospital received the test report of deceased Ghulam Sarwar two days of his death. It confirmed that he had been suffering from Swine flu.

Dr Ashraf Ali Khan, an infectious diseases consultant, said that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had recommended that people who fell in the high-risk category get vaccinated with the vaccine available for this year as well as anyone who desired to prevent an attack of influenza.

“Influenza vaccine is a trivalent vaccine that addresses three currently circulating influenza types. It is recommended as a yearly jab in the upper arm muscle. Influenza vaccine has been shown in studies to be highly beneficial especially in people with weakened immune system or who have a weaker milieu in general such as in people over the age of 50 and people with immune compromising conditions.”

A technical committee, constituted by the Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, on H1N1 Seasonal Influenza held a meeting to review the latest situation of seasonal influenza across the province at Primary and Secondary Health Department on Thursday.

Health DG Dr Akhtar Rasheed Malik informed the meeting that so far, 134 confirmed influenza patients had been reported across the Punjab since last August. He said that vaccination of doctors, nurses, deputed for the treatment of influenza patients had also been completed.

WHO Representative Dr Jamshed said that the real need was to create maximum awareness among the people regarding the disease so that people should adopt preventive measures and use handkerchief or tissue paper while coughing and sneezing to prevent others from the virus. Moreover, people should wash their hands with soap after handshaking with the persons suffering from seasonal influenza. He added that this message should be communicated house to house through schoolchildren and the media.

Minister Health Khawaja Imran Nazir directed that the disease controlling activities and measures must be accelerated and vigorous awareness campaign against the seasonal influenza should be continued.

He said that electronic media, news channels and cable channels also be used for raising awareness among the masses. He said that Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif had constituted a technical committee to monitor the H1N1 seasonal influenza situation in the province and to take immediate effective measures for the control of the disease and ensuring medical treatment of the patients in public sector hospitals.

Published in Daily Times, January 19^th 2018.