KOHAT: The civil society here has criticised the administration of the women and children hospital where at least three doctors and a dispenser have tested positive for Covid-19 due to alleged negligence.

Patients come to the hospital from all areas of Kohat division, including Hangu, Orakzai and Kurram districts and Darra Adamkhel.

Following the death of a nurse, Mussarat, who had died of the virus, Dr Waleedur Rehman, Dr Fauzia Gul, Dr Nigar Hussain and dispenser Haroon Masih had tested positive for the virus. Office boy Taimoor Khan and female nurse Nomi Saleem had also been reported positive due to recording their presence through biometric machine, sources said.

The doctors had been isolated whereas other staff members were shifted to isolation ward at KDA teaching hospital.

MS says biometric attendance suspended over cases among staff

After an open kutchery at the DC office, Rahe Haq Party chairman claimed that the biometric attendance had been banned all over the province due to Covid-19, but despite spread of infection from the machine it was being used.

Medical superintendent of the hospital Dr Gule Rana told Dawn that it was propaganda against her and that the nurse had a wounded thumb and did not go through biometric.

She said they had unofficially suspended biometric attendance as a precaution and an attendance register was being maintained. She said that the provincial government had issued no notification for banning the biometric system.

She said that they had bought the temperature testing machine privately and appointed a dispenser to check the people coming to the hospital.

Similarly, a machine had also been bought which sprayed disinfectants in the wards and emergency in all three shifts.

However, the people condemned the closure of evening and night ultrasound facility and children OPD. The hospital had two dental surgeons, but the clinic was not opened in the evening causing problems to the people.

The new administration had closed evening children immunisation facility where the office-goers and businessmen brought their children after finishing their work. Dr Gule Rana said there was no official provision for the evening shift.

About Covid-19 cases, the MS said they could not close the emergency for a minute because of the patients’ rush.She said daily 400 patients came to the hospital and a large number of children and women had to be admitted.

Published in Dawn, June 5th, 2020