LAHORE: The fourth wave of Covid-19 is quite challenging as the bed occupancy rate is gradually increasing in the state-run hospitals of the province.

With 596 new positive cases reported all over the province during the last 24 hours (Thursday), the bed occupancy in intensive care units and high dependency units in the government hospitals of Punjab increased to 16 and 17 per cent respectively due to complications the Covid patients are complaining.

In Lahore, the situation is alarming at the Mayo Hospital where the bed occupancy in ICUs reached 75 per cent. This health facility had shared enormous burden of Covid patients during the last three spikes of the virus. There are reports that the other teaching hospitals of the city also witnessed rush of patients after the infectivity rate of the virus increased in the city.

According to the data, the bed occupancy rate in the ICUs and HDUs in Lahore’s teaching hospitals increased to 31 and 29 per cent respectively and major factor behind patients’ load was said to be the outbreak of highly infectious and deadly delta variant which constitutes 80pc of the reported cases in Punjab.

The statistics showed that the positivity rate of the virus increased to 10.89 in Multan, 10.2 in Rawalpindi and 3.4 in Lahore. Meanwhile, Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Secretary Sarah Aslam said the special campaign had been intensified to vaccinate 40pc of the population of Lahore, Multan, Gujranwala and Faisalabad and 70pc of Rawalpindi.

She said the campaign was launched at the level of union council in view of the need and public convenience. She said after 592 new positive cases were reported, the tally reached 354,904 in Punjab. Of the new positive cases, 245 were reported in Lahore alone, she said. She said the death toll reached 10,993 after 17 patients died in the last 24 hours in Punjab.

She asked the public to follow SOPs and said timely vaccination was the only way to cope with Delta variant.

Published in Dawn, July 30th, 2021