LAHORE – Punjab has suspended open heart surgeries at Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) due to seepage of sewerage water in the operation theatres after significant monsoon rains.
Operations theatres of the biggest cardiac centre in the province have been closed down for third party infection audit to save precious lives of patients, said Dr Javed Akram, caretaker health minister, while addressing a press conference at the PIC on Thursday.
Cardiac patients awaiting open heart surgeries were already facing huge delay due to closure of seven out of nine OTs.
Queue was increasing day by day due to functioning of only two OTs and now these too have also been closed down for infection audit.
When all OTs were fully functional, the PIC was performing 12-14 open heart surgeries on daily basis.
Dr Javed Akram has said that the OTs have been closed due to high infection. He said that the government was taking samples on daily basis and resorted to this step on rising infection level. He said that the move was aimed at saving the health and lives of patients.
He claimed that two OTs of the PIC have been made functional after clearing infection. He said that the remaining OTs will be opened for surgeries after making them infection free.
The situation, however, is different as no surgery has been performed at the PIC for the last three days.
The minister said that two OTs at Jinnah Hospitals have also been made functional for performing surgeries of PIC patients.
