Zubair Qureshi
Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Monday reopened two of its Outpatient Departments (OPDs), Gyne and Children OPDs as cases of coronavirus have significantly declined in the federal capital.
Joint Executive Director of PIMS while talking to Pakistan Observer confirmed these two facilities are resuming normal working with effect from August 17 as Covid-19 patients load has almost ended in the hospital.
“We are opening OPDs in parts and for the time being Gynae and Children’s hospital started. The main hospital, he said would start from August 20, Thursday.
When asked about the coronavirus health guidelines and Standard Operating Practices (SOPs) being practiced at these OPDs, he said all the SOPs were in place. We are letting in only those who are wearing masks while thermal screening is also in place, he said.
PIMS on Monday received a total of 38 suspected cases but returned all of them since none of them was suffering from any symptoms. Besides the hospital discharged five patients after they recovered from the virus.
Currently, there are five patients admitted at the hospital and three are on the ventilators.
It was in the beginning of the current month, that the hospital management had made biometric attendance (suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic) mandatory so that employees could attend to their duties regularly as soon as OPDs were made functional.
PIMS Media Coordinator Dr Wasim Khawaja while talking to Pakistan Observer said half of the wards dedicated to Covid-19 treatment were handed over to other departments. Now that OPDs are being reopened, he said adding around 10,000 patients will once again visit the hospital every day.
“Four OPDs – Burns Centre, Mother and Child Hospital, Children’s Hospital and Cardiac Centre – will be made operational and renovation work is underway in the main hospital, known as Islamabad Hospital, its patients will be seen at the filter clinic,” he said.
Meanwhile, the private wards will remain dedicated to Covid-19 patients. Out of the six medical and surgical wards, three have been handed over to different departments.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 curve is almost flattening in the federal capital as the city registered only 12 new cases in the last twenty-four hours while no death was reported during this period. This is the sixth consecutive day that no new death was witnessed in Islamabad.
