Daily Times

Panic over coronavirus in Pakistan has manifested in extreme ways. Health experts say there is good reason to be concerned, but not because people will not be able to get their hands on masks or have little time to stock up on food in case of a pandemic. Instead, what is slowly starting to keep them up at night is whether the Punjab’s healthcare system is prepared to properly handle an influx of cases.

Ever since a patient suspected to be affected by covid-19 was brought to Mayo Hospital, the doctors working there have grown concerns about catching the coronavirus, which causes the disease, and spreading it to other patients.

The staff reported that hospital lacks N95 respirator masks, which are the most effective at blocking respiratory droplets that spread the disease, and other specialized equipment. Merely two safety kits are provided to the medical staff of 70 people including 24 staff workers and 30 doctors. Moreover, the lives of 12 other patients are on stake since the doctors and nurses are reluctant to enter the department.

The person with the virus came to the emergency department but is kept in surgical ICU.

Notably, it has become clear that some hospitals in Sindh took the threat of pandemic seriously and have plans in place and that others in Punjab simply hope this day would never come.

It is heart wrenching, the kind of panic the situation is creating and the psychological fear attached to the pandemic is pushing suspects into constant trauma for not being able to get treatment and medical care.

In a nutshell, government and private hospitals should take extra measures to protect workers’ health and ensure that they will have sufficient staff to handle the outbreak as healthy medical workers are at an increased risk of the most severe complications of coronavirus because of repeated exposure to the illness via their patients. One factor worth considering is the viral load a nurse or doctor may face.