Despite claims of health authorities, measles continued to play havoc, as four more children become victims of the disease here at Mayo Hospital Lahore on Saturday. The victim children are identified as Aman, Subhan, Imran and Malaika, who were brought to Mayo Hospital after being diagnosed measles. All the four ill-fated children belong to different areas of Lahore.
According to hospital sources, as many as 17 measles' affectees were brought to the hospital during the last 24 hours. As per report of the Disease Surveillance System of the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), five districts of Punjab ie, Lahore, Gujranwala, Rawalpindi, Dera Ghazi Khan and Muzaffargarh have been declared at high risk where the number of measles cases has reached 7,794 since January this year. The provincial metropolis Lahore remained on top with 2,539 cases followed by Gujranwala with 691 cases, Muzaffargarh with 430 cases, DG Khan with 344 cases and Rawalpindi with 281 cases.
As per figures, so far 10 children had died of measles in the last four months including seven deaths in Lahore. Sources claimed that despite announcement of the government, the management of different city hospitals had failed to set up isolation wards for measles affected patients.
Punjab Minister for Health Salima Hashmi said that negligence in routine immunisation coverage was the major cause of spreading measles, adding that strict measures were being taken to remove the loopholes of immunisation coverage. Talking to media after inaugurating computerised token system for the convenient of the patients at Government Shahdra Hospital here on Saturday, Salima Hashmi said Health Department as well as government of the Punjab was taking every step to control the measles menace. She said free treatment facilities were being extended to the measles affected children in the hospitals.
She disclosed that Punjab government was planning to launch a massive anti-measles campaign throughout the province in the month of June on which Rs 3.5 billion would be spent. She further said that malnutrition, poverty and non-availability of basic civic facilities directly affected the health of women and children. Earlier, Salima Hashmi inaugurated the newly introduced computerised token system for the patients in the hospital, adding that computerised token system would be introduced in other public hospitals in phases.
She said the system would end favouritism in the hospitals and every patient would avail facility of medical check-up by a doctor on his turn. Secretary Health Arif Nadeem, MS Dr Abid Kareem, Project Director Dr Ijaz Ahmed Sheikh and other senior doctors were present on this occasion.
On the other hand, sources in the health department said the government was fully alert and instructions had already been issued to the officials concerned to curtail the disease of measles using all available resources. A steering committee comprising senior paediatricians was also regularly meeting to discuss the post-measles outbreak situation, the sources added.