ISLAMABAD: The walk-through gates installed at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) to disinfect people as enter the hospital’s emergency ward and its Covid-19 filter clinic, have not been functioning for more than a week.

According to Pims Executive Director Dr Ansar Maxood, both gates were installed by a philanthropists and were switched off when the philanthropist stopped supplying the chemical used in the gates to disinfect people passing through.

A Pims employee who asked not to be named said that the gates were installed to disinfect people as a way to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but have been out of order for a week.

“It is unfortunate that the gates are out of order at a hospital that is dealing with Covid-19 patients. The Capital Development Authority (CDA) installed such gates across the city including in the fruit and vegetable market, and all of those are functional,” he added.

Mohammad Faiq, an Islamabad resident, also said it was unfortunate that disinfection gates were out of order in one of the largest public sector hospitals in the country.

“We urge the hospital administration have them repaired or address the issue so that patients and their attendants are disinfected before entering the hospital and chances of spreading the virus can be minimised,” he said.

The CDA and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration have installed 20 walk-through disinfection gates in the city to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The solution used in these gates is sometimes referred to as a chlorine-based solution, but is typically bleach diluted with water.

Dr Maxood told Dawn that the gates at the hospital were placed by a philanthropist, who said he would also provide the disinfecting solution.

“However, he stopped the supply of the solution or chemical, so they were switched off. It is not correct that the walk-through gates are out of order,” he said.

When asked why the hospital it not providing the solution itself, Dr Maxood said neither the World Health Organisation nor the Ministry of National Health Sciences have made recommendations regarding the usefulness of such gates.

“We have decided to spend the same amount on purchasing sanitiser rather than the solution,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2020