Karachi faces shortage of ventilators amid spike in Covid cases

KARACHI: Karachi faces shortage of ventilators in all major hospitals, amid a surge in the coronavirus cases being reported across the city.

According to the National Command Operation Center (NCOC) 1,134 people have been tested positive, while eight people have died during the last 24 hours and the condition of 976 patients is said to be precarious.

The government has allocated specific places for the Covid-19 patients at infectious diseases hospital where all beds and Intensive Care Units (ICUs) are running at full occupancy, while all 145 beds at the Karachi Expo Center also have been occupied.

Only a few beds are available in the city’s major public sector hospitals, including Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, Civil Hospital Karachi and Lyari General Hospital.

A huge influx of Covid patients is being witnessed in the city hospitals and many people are receiving their vaccination jabs.

Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) general secretary Dr Qaisar Sajjad told BOL that despite the government’s announcement of the presence of the Delta variant in Sindh, the people have not paid any heed to the caution and celebrated Eid without adhering to the standard operating procedures.

“Since [the] people mingled up with each other and hosted gatherings and BBQ parties there is an obvious spike in the number of Covid cases in the city and other parts of Sindh,” he commented.

He said the people must get themselves vaccinated and avoid social gatherings so that they can save themselves from the Delta variant.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has also requested the people to get themselves vaccinated as soon as possible.

“Patients with Covid who had already been vaccinated are much stable than the ones who were not vaccinated,” the chief minister said, urging the people to follow SOPs and get themselves vaccinated.

The National Command and Operation Centre on Saturday made Covid vaccination certificate mandatory for domestic flights from August 1.

The NCOC, which is supervising Pakistan’s reaction to the Covid-19 has asked the citizens to get immunised by July 31 to avoid any hassle.

“The citizens should get a Covid vaccine certificate after the vaccination process,” the body said in a message on its Twitter handle.