March 11, 2008	Tuesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 2, 1429

HYDERABAD, March 10: Consensus was reached among all deans and professors of community medicines at the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMHS) on Monday to change chapter on snakebite treatment protocol in community medicine book.

The existing chapter from Western books was of no help in treating snakebite victim as deaths continue to increase.

The LUMHS had taken an initiative with the help of a leading snakebite expert and adviser to the Pakistan Medical and Research Council (PMRC) Ian Simpson who was doing research on treatment protocol of snakebite victims for several months at the LUMHS.

The LUMHS organized “review of snakebite protocol national workshop” attended by deans and professors of community medicines from medical universities of Karachi, Abbotabad, Peshawar, Quetta, and Lahore. The author of community medicine book, Prof Mahar Hansotia was also present.

After threadbare discussion on the topic consensus was reached between the participants that the chapter in community medicine regarding snakebite treatment should be changed immediately in the light of suggestions and observations.

Notes and points to be incorporated in the chapter in question were handed over to author, Prof Hansotia who undertook to replace it accordingly in the next three months and that would be adopted by all universities in the country in the larger public interest.

Need to replace the chapter was felt, according to the VC LUMHS Prof DrNoshad A.Shaikh, when during planning of Anti Snake Venom (ASV) it was revealed that people especially in areas of Tharparkar, Umerkot, Thatta were unnecessarily falling prey to snakes whose different species existed in Pakistan and snakes like cobra and Lundi were too dangerous as compared to others.

“Our author has copied the chapter of snakebite protocol from western textbooks and it is being taught to students over the last 50 years. But now we are now going to serve community by bringing changes in required chapter”, Noshad Shaikh asserted. He also called for training workshops for doctors completing their graduation or post-graduation to keep themselves abreast of the change that were going to be inserted in the snakebite treatment protocol.

He briefed the journalists after the workshop that until now wrong protocol was adopted by doctors to treat victims.