ABBOTTABAD: Lack of personal protective equipments (PPEs) and inadequate facilities in the public sector hospitals across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa undermine the ability of medics to effectively fight the second coronavirus wave in the province, a doctors’ body has pointed out.

“We will likely face shortage of staff in hospitals as doctors, paramedics and nursing staff continue to be infected by the virus with each passing day as no triage or referral system has been introduced in OPDs,” Dr Daud Iqbal, a spokesman of the People’s Doctors Forum (PDF), told mediapersons after a cabinet meeting of the forum presided over by its chairman Dr Nisar Khan here on Monday.

Dr Iqbal said shortage of protective gear was now being felt in many hospitals across the province as the number of patients testing positive for the deadly coronavirus continued to increase.

He said a PPE kit consisted of specialised clothing, disposable masks, gowns, hoods, gloves, shoe covers and face shields, which was vital for the healthcare providers in dealing with infectious diseases.

The PDF spokesman said doctors had been exposed to the deadly virus as no screening process like in the first phase had been started in hospitals, which had caused direct threat not only to non-Covid-19 patients but also to doctors and other health professionals.

He asked the government to immediately do the needful, especially in the tertiary care hospitals, or the situation would be out of control. He pointed out that OPDs were flooded with patients where no masks and sanitisers were provided to them.

Dr Iqbal asked the provincial health department to ensure provision of required medicines in all the public sector hospitals for coronavirus patients.

Similarly, he demanded allocation of dedicated space for doctors who had been infected with coronavirus.

He urged the public to take precautionary measures and avoid crowded places.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2020