LAHORE: After Nishtar Hospital, Multan, the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) Lahore has also emerged as another flashpoint of Covid-19 as according to reports, at least 12 doctors, nurses and paramedics have been found positive for the virus, besides a patient who underwent a bypass surgery at the institute.

The samples of 250 people, including doctors and paramedics working at the PIC, have sent for lab tests and their reports are awaited.

PIC Chief Executive Officer Dr Saqib Shafi is also among those declared suspected cases for being in close contact with some confirmed patients of Covid-19.

The growing local transmission of the virus is taking a heavy toll on the people, especially doctors and paramedics, as none of the persons tested positive for the virus at the PIC had foreign travel history.

Prof Shafi confirmed to Dawn on Thursday that three doctors, five nurses and paramedics were among the 12 people found positive for the virus at the PIC.

He said a few days back a professor of cardiac surgery at the PIC had also tested positive after he had mild symptoms.

He said there was a possibility that the professor got infected by a cardiac patient who had undergone bypass surgery at the institute and was later tested positive for the coronavirus.

Prof Shafi said after being declared a carrier the senior doctor was immediately shifted to the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) where he was recovering fast.

He said after the first confirmed virus case surfaced at the PIC, an investigation was launched and samples of the patient operated upon by the professor of cardiology were sent for lab tests that turned out to be positive.

Alerted by the development, the institute expanded the scope of investigations and sent samples of all the doctors, nurses and paramedics who had assisted the cardiac surgeon in operation theatre for tests. Similarly, all the staff of the cardiac care unit where the patient was shifted after surgery was declared suspected patients, besides those they had interacted at the institute, the PIC chief said.

He said the samples of total 125 people were sent to the government lab for testing on Monday and 12 out of them tested positive, including the personal assistant of the professor. The institute further traced the contacts of the confirmed and suspected patients and on Tuesday sent samples of 120 PIC employees, including doctors, nurses and paramedics.

“I was also among these suspects as professor of cardiac surgery has been interacting with me during official assignments and meetings also attended by many of his other senior colleagues,” said Prof Shafi.

He said a majority of the confirmed patients were asymptomatic carriers who were kept in isolation at various state-run health facilities.

“To utter surprise to all of us at the PIC, the patient who had undergone major heart operation recovered fast from the Covid-19 when he was removed from the ventilator,” said Prof Shafi.

He was of the view that given the situation so far it could be assumed the virus’ impact in Pakistan was not as deadly as it was in some European countries and the US.

“Despite this we are required to conduct extensive research on coronavirus to reach any conclusion about its severity and type,” the PIC chief said.

Published in Dawn, April 17th, 2020