PESHAWAR: The outbreak of Covid-19 prompted the government to upgrade health facilities, especially the intensive care services that were available in only few hospitals prior to advent of the pandemic in the province.

Peshawar Institute of Cardiology (PIC), the construction of which began in 2005 but was inaugurated to house Covid-19 patients, is now treating cardiac patients.

“Before the province was affected by the virus, we had oxygen plants in four teaching hospitals. Now there are 30 health facilities where the facility of oxygen exists. For Covid-19, the health department upgraded all services, especially the intensive care and high dependency units that are now being used for the treatment of non-Covid-19 patients,” Dr Ikramullah Khan, the additional director-general of health services Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told Dawn.

He said that there were now well-equipped ICUs in Malakand, Dir Upper and Lower, Haripur, Dera Ismail Khan, Lakki Marwat, Karak and Swat where serious patients were being treated. He said that such developments at the district level occurred only because of the pandemic but those services were helping the local patients, who were previously brought to Peshawar hospitals for treatment.

Dr Ikram said that they had concentrated on provision of oxygen to health facilities due to more infections in early days. “We provided oxygen to the hospitals from the main warehouse through cylinders,” he added.

The number of ICU beds in the province reached 6,000 as opposed to only 1,000 before the arrival of the virus as there was desperate need to manage the critically-ill Covid-19 patients.

Likewise, the number of ventilators in the province had almost been tripled due to which the treatment rate of the seriously-ill patients improved, he said. “When Covid-19 broke out, we had only 70 ventilators. The number is now more than 500,” he said.

“All these facilities were upgraded due to the pandemic but now these are being utilised for general patients. In more than 50 hospitals across the province, we have enforced infection control measures to safeguard health professionals and patients from infections,” said Dr Ikram.

He said that most of the staffers were trained in infection control measures and they were taking care of the hospitals where they worked. Similarly, Covid-19 proved a blessing in disguise for the health department to develop testing facilities.

In early 2020, Public Health Reference Laboratory at Khyber Medical University started Covid-19 tests from processing 40 samples daily but within a short span of time the department put in place Covid-19 PCR facilities in 13 hospitals to ensure that the suspected patients are diagnosed promptly.

Not only public sector, but in private sectors five Covid-19 laboratories were allowed after inspection by the department to make sure that the people get tested everywhere in the province.

Dr Ikram said that the Peshawar Institute of Cardiology was completed but not functional because of lack of facilities there. “With the occurrence of the pandemic, we equipped the building to be utilised for coronavirus patients as number of patients continued to surge,” he said. However, the number of patients declined and no patient was admitted there, he added.

He said that PIC was ultimately inaugurated by prime minister in December last year, where heart patients were being treated free of cost. The 295-bed PIC is offering cardiac surgery, for both paediatric and adult patients.

Same is the case of Institute of Hepatology, the building of which was completed but it was not made functional. It was made functional to deal with Covid-19 patients. The institute will soon start providing basic services to hepatitis patients.

Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2021