HYDERABAD: Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMHS) has, though belatedly, taken over charge of isolation ward for Covid-19 patients in Liaquat University Hospital (LUH) for better management in the wake of growing number of coronavirus patients in Hyderabad.

According to the decision taken by the university on Saturday, professor of medicine Dr Shoaib Ansari will work as in-charge of the Covid-19 ward and he will be assisted by other faculty members including senior cardiologist Prof Abdul Ghaffar Memon, Dr Mukhtiar Hussain Jaffery, Dr Abdul Ghani Rahimoon, Dr Bhagwan Das, Dr Bedar Bakhit Khan and Dr Mobin Ahmed Memon.

LUMHS VC Prof Dr Bikha Ram said the university had notified its team and now LUH MS had to ensure availability of medical officers, nursing and supporting staff including paramedics, office for professor and other needs of faculty members.

“LUH administration should make sure the isolation ward remains under Dr Shoaib Ansari’s supervision. MS must provide the team with personal protective equipment (PPE),” he said.

LUH acting MS Dr Shahid Junejo said that LUH would ensure availability of all basic requirements to the team. Saturday’s decision was taken jointly by LUH and LUMHS under which faculty members would be available in the hospital in morning and evening shifts and visit the isolation ward regularly during their duty hours.

“During night shift professors or their deputies will be on call but simultaneously stay in touch with juniors. Senior postgraduate (PGs) students would be available in respective wards. In case of emergency, PGs and LUH will call professors and associate professors to see patients,” he said.

It took the university an entire month to create a body to take care of the LUH isolation ward in the light of April 6 directives of chief minister which said that “concerned faculty members of universities should take charge of ICUs designated for coronavirus patients for proper healthcare of patients round the clock”.

Sources in LUH claimed that the university’s faculty members were reluctant to perform duties in the Covid-19 ward for obvious reasons. The university administration was, however, still reluctant to ensure ‘round the clock’ availability of senior-level faculty members in the isolation ward, said the sources.

The isolation ward was being managed by medical officers of LUH and the faculty members were consulted only over phone. The LUH administration had a few days back shifted all of its Covid-19 patients to 40-bed high dependency unit and intensive care unit set up in a newly constructed building.

“Viral load seems to be increasing in HDU and ICU and it may slow down recovery of healthy patients. After consultation with senior faculty we will bring stable patients back to the old isolation ward and keep only critical ones there,” said LUH’s focal person Dr Aftab Hussain Phull.

SUKKUR: Sixteen persons out of 130 whose samples were collected in different parts of Ghotki district a few days ago tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday, raising the district’s tally so far to 72, according to Deputy Commissioner Khalid Saleem.

He said that the remaining 114 persons were found to be negative for the virus. Thirteen of the infected persons belonged to eight villages in Ubauro taluka, two lived in Ghotki and one in Daharki. All the patients were being quarantined, he said.

He said that 191 coronavirus cases had so far surfaced in the district out of which 118 had recovered and gone home and one patient had died. Samples of 521 people had been taken over the past five days and of them results of 180 were still being awaited, he said.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2020