ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for National Health Services Dr Faisal Sultan Saturday urged the people to strictly adhere to Covid-19 guidelines in view of increasing numbers of fresh infections reported across the country.
“Coronavirus is deadly but we can control it just as we arrested the previous two peaks by following the SOPs [standard operating procedures]”, he said while speaking to state-owned broadcaster Pakistan Television (PTV).
His comments come days after Minister for Development and Planning Asad Umar said a third wave of the pandemic had begun in Pakistan.
“The phenomena driving it is the spread of the United Kingdom strain,” he had said and noted that districts with the high transmission rates also had higher percentages of nationals who had returned from Britain.
Dr Sultan said the third wave could further hit the nation and daunt the relief measures, warning that it could be “deadlier than the previous two [coronavirus] waves”.
The government is seeking public cooperation in adhering to the health guidelines and save precious lives, including those of our loved ones, by taking preventive measures, he said.
Metropolitan cities, he said, were under pressure with the rising infections and an increase in hospitalisations with Covid-19-related complications.
“We must wear a mask while going out as it reduces transmission of infection by 70 to 90 percent,” he said. “Good hygiene and regular handwashing are some of the best weapons against the virus” which causes a flu-like respiratory illness.
“If we continue to practice all guidelines, I assure you we will counter the present wave of Covid-19 just as successfully as we managed the first two,” he added.
He said the government was taking emergency measures to close all businesses and schools within allocated time slots.
The government keeping track of the outbreak in Pakistan on Saturday reported 2,338 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 42,499 tests during the past 24 hours, receiving back a positivity rate of 5.5 per cent. As per the NCOC, total 46 patients died due to the virus in the past 24 hours.
Earlier this week, the government launched the second phase of Covid-19 vaccination for the general public, starting with older people, as it grapples with a high degree of vaccination hesitancy among the people, even among health workers.
The drive will begin with a focus on the oldest people in the community, generally, over the age of 80, Dr Sultan had said.
“We will work our way down in coming days,” Sultan told Reuters.
According to a recent survey, nearly half of healthcare staff had concerns over Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, which is the only one available in Pakistan for now.
The poll of 555 medical workers conducted by Gallup Pakistan and a medical association between February 12 and February 20 found that many health workers would prefer other vaccines.
