PESHAWAR, March 25: The provincial health department does not have adequate facilities to cope with the situation arising out of the confirmation of the bird flu virus in Abbottabad and Charsadda, say officials.

“We are not prepared to cope with the situation in case of an epidemic,” said an official at the health directorate here on Friday.

Officials said that eight poultry workers who had been quarantined after they showed symptoms of bird flu had been sent home without further investigation.

“We do not have facilities to investigate suspected patients,” said the official, adding that 12 hospitals had been identified as sentinel centres in case of an outbreak of the disease.

A World Health Organisation (WHO) official said they had been informed by the government about the confirmation of H5N1 virus in the province. “We do not work at our own. We intervene when the government seeks technical assistance from us in any public health problem,” he added.

WHO organised a two-day workshop to provide information to its 50 doctors working in the NWFP and FATA about the signs and symptoms in suspected victims of bird flu.

The official said trained doctors would now act as master trainers for doctors, nurses and paramedics at various health facilities. He said a bird flu victim had respiratory illness.

“We are giving instructions to health professionals to advise the poultry workers to use Personal Protection Equipment such as mask, glasses and gloves. People should avoid contact with poultry,” he said.

He pointed out that transmission of bird flu from human to human had not been recorded in all 170 patients so far killed by the disease. There was no vaccine for humans yet, he added.

“The most important thing is coordination among health, livestock and agriculture departments,” said an official at the provincial health department.

About 30,000 chickens have been culled in Charsadda and Abbottabad so far.