In response to the rise in COVID-19 and H1N1 influenza cases in the province, the Sindh Health Department has issued directives to all district health offices to enforce preventive measures, according to a recent directive emerging during the week. Prompted by the winter season, traditionally a high risk phase for these diseases, this call to action aims to forestall further transmission.
In light of a recent Geo News report detailing the disease spread, the Sindh Health Department promptly responded by commissioning district health officers to enforce protective measures. The responsibilities include enforcing guidelines and enhancing active surveillance of COVID-19 and H1N1 cases in healthcare facilities within their districts.
One of the stipulated measures is to ensure prompt and accurate reporting of suspected and confirmed cases from healthcare facilities and labs to the provincial health office. Equally important is assuring the availability and use of personal protective equipment and other essential supplies across all healthcare facilities.
The Sindh Health Department mandated officers to actively familiarize the community with the influenza vaccination, particularly focusing on vulnerable groups such as the elderly, individuals with chronic conditions, and healthcare workers.
Moreover, they emphasized reinforcing Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practices across public and private healthcare facilities and initiating public awareness campaigns centered around preventive measures, such as appropriate masking, effective hand hygiene practices, and observing social distancing.
Health officers are urged to widely circulate information about the symptoms of COVID-19 and H1N1 and the indispensability of securing timely medical treatment. Concurrently, the department advised officers to submit weekly situational reports detailing the number of cases, interventions applied, and challenges encountered.
The aim is to ensure strict compliance with these directives as a priority in preserving public health. Recent reports by Geo News, marked January 18, highlighted an approximate 30% portion of patients showing cold and cough symptoms testing positive for COVID-19 in the megalopolis.
According to Professor Saeed Khan, an infectious disease specialist at Dow University Hospital, a worrying number of patients in the city are presenting symptoms such as cold, cough, and fever. Further tests reveal that 25% to 30% of these patients are COVID-19 positive. Concurrently, diagnosis reports illustrate that 10% to 12% of patients suffer from Influenza H1N1, while 5% to 10% of pediatric patients have respiratory tract infections.
Professor Khan warns the symptoms of COVID-19, Influenza H1N1, and other winter-driven viral infections are strikingly similar. This creates a predicament where patients evade testing, leading to an upswing in undiagnosed cases.
Despite the uptrend, the Sindh Minister for Health, Azra Pechuho, urged for calm, corroborating that upon testing over 100 people, only seven were found to be COVID-19 positive. The Minister reaffirmed that COVID-19-infected individuals with only mild flu-like symptoms were advised to self-isolate at home, highlighting that the virus is indeed now being treated like a standard seasonal flu globally.
Source: https://www.geo.tv/latest/586296-sindh-orders-for-measures-to-prevent-spread-of-covid-19-h1n1