PPEs only meant for those treating patients: Zafar

The Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on National Health and Regulations, Dr Zafar Mirza, Thursday again urged health professionals of rational use of personal protective equipments (PPEs) stressing that the PPEs were only meant for medics treating the COVID-19 patients.

Addressing a press conference here, he said that the provision of the PPEs to frontline health workers was ongoing and the material should be used as per the given guidelines.

"Excessive use of the material is being observed," he said, adding that the guidelines provided to hospitals outline the details of professionals allowed to use the equipment.

The SAPM on health affairs said that currently 44,896 coronavirus tests had been performed in the country including 2,737 tests during the last 24 hours. "Out of total tests during 24-hour, 248 have tested positive," he said, adding that the number of recoveries from the virus had improved significantly at national and international levels.

He said that around 63 people had so far died from the virus in Pakistan.

Giving detail, Mirza said that almost 78 percent of the dead were male, people above 50 years of age 85 percent, and 63 percent had previous other ailments too.

Mirza also said that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) had allowed local production of raw material for chloroquine as part of efforts to cope with the coronavirus challenge.

The special assistant said that the drug regulatory body had allowed the clinical trials of locally-manufactured ventilators as well as the DRAP was permitted clinical trials of plasma therapy for coronavirus treatment.

He added that the government would provide all out support to such institutions and the institutions willing to do so, could apply online on the official website of the DRAP.

More than 50 companies have been allowed to produce sanitisers to contain the spread of the pandemic.

The companies will prepare quality sanitisers as per the directions of the World Health Organization. He said that they were adopting a systematic procedure to avoid shortage of the equipment.

"We have already dispatched the equipment needed for a week to the 152 hospitals designated to treat coronavirus patients across the country," Dr Mirza said.

The special assistant said that a central database of the testing kits was also being established in order to ensure proper supply of it across the country.

"We will be supplying testing kits to 400 hospitals," he said.

Dr Mirza said that fortunately their early estimates regarding rise in coronavirus cases in the country had proved wrong due to lockdown and social distancing measures.

However, he said that it would not be wise to remain satisfied and return to a normal routine.

"We should adopt more measures to avoid spread of the virus to succeed our previous efforts," he said.

He said that there was shortage of ventilators in the country and the government has encouraged local manufacturing of it.

"We want people to invest in it to overcome the shortage and anyone eyeing to manufacture it should approach the DRAP for approval," Dr Mirza said.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Thursday provided safety equipment for doctors and medical staff of 100 hospitals in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. According a NDMA spokesperson, "the equipment delivered today includes 74,000 surgical and 4,652 N-95 masks."

He added that around 8,759 protective suits and more than 65,000 gloves were also provided in the consignment that included 3,000 sterilised gowns and 4,180 shoe covers.

Moreover, the safety equipment released also include 4,535 surgical caps, 1,322 protective glasses and 1,186 face shields, he added.

In other provinces, safety equipment for hospitals and medical staff would be dispatched within the next 24 hours.