KARACHI, Nov 4: The apartment dwellers around Civil Hospital got alarmed when as many as 21 trauma patients from various parts of the city were brought to the hospital in nine ambulances. The residents feared whether any mass tragedy had hit Karachi.
Interestingly, this was not the case. There were patients and there were ambulances. And there were doctors and other hospital staff. But all of them were undergoing a drill or a mock exercise aimed at meeting such a possible eventuality in a city like Karachi which often remains fraught with the dangers of mass casualties.
Once the siren-mounted vehicles pulled on in front of the casualty department, 11 stretchers manned by paramedical staff began shifting the patients into the 740-bed hospital premises.
According to the CHK administration, the hospital could provide treatment to as many as 200 trauma patients simultaneously. It has room for 40 patients in its casualty or emergency department and the remaining could be accommodated in six surgical wards, neuro-surgical ward, orthopaedic ward and the burns unit.
Given the overall volatile situation in the country, the hospital administration had planned to undergo a drill in order to keep the staff on alert to meet any mass scale medical emergency.
Of the 21 patients brought to the casualty, three were serious with massive blood loss. They were immediately put under IV line and provided blood transfusion.
Two others had come with head injuries and seven had suffered wounds on various parts, for which doctors from neuro, orthopaedics and general surgery were immediately called in.
Three patients were admitted to the surgical ward, four to orthopaedics and one to the neuro surgery. Two patients with multiple injuries, whose condition was serious, were rushed to the emergency theatre and operated upon for abdomen and chest injuries.
The patients who were brought to the casualty underwent X- ray, CT scan and other investigations in the concerned departments. They were supplied with medicines, surgical items, drips and other required drugs from the hospital. These articles were supplied from the stock of 200 patients which is exclusively kept for such mass casualties.
Provincial health secretary, Khalid Latif, who was present on the occasion, went to each and every patient brought for the drill.
Other present on the occasion included Prof Naushad Sheikh, Dr Kaleem Butt, Dr Hamid Ali and Zakir Ali.
