KARACHI, Dec 5: The Sindh government is considering setting up an Epidemic Control and Investigation Cell (ECIC), on the lines of the Punjab government to take up issues related to the outbreak of epidemics.

The Punjab government has established the ECIC on November 22 to deal with epidemics in the province. Under the programme, the government had issued a list of some 17 diseases to all EDOs (health) and heads of all hospitals in the public sector, with directions to submit a comprehensive report whenever a case related to any of these ailments was reported in there respective jurisdiction.

The list includes dengue fever, malaria, gastroenteritis, cholera, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), polio and measles.

The Sindh health department on October 24, 2004 had also proposed a plan to establish an Epidemic Control and Response Centre (ECPC) in coordination with the World Health Organisation and Pakistan Health Institute, Islamabad.

According to sources in the health department, it could take a long time to establish the cell in question. However, they failed to cite the reasons for the delay.

In this regard, Dr Shafqat Hussain Abbasi, Additional Secretary (Technical) said that plan to establish ECPC was in the pipeline and after return of Sindh Health Minister Syed Sardar Ahmed from the US; the health department would start work on formulising the cell.

“Right now our full attention is towards possible outbreak of bird flu,” he said.

Instead of controlling epidemics the government should take steps for the prevention of the same, said Dr Qaiser Sajjad, honorary General Secretary of the Pakistan Medical Association.

He lauded step of the Punjab government to establish an epidemic control Cell and urged the Sindh government to accelerate its efforts to set up such a cell in the province.—PPI