ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Health Dr Faisal Sultan on Tuesday said the government was increasing the domestic production of oxygen to support the fatigued healthcare system should the coronavirus cases slip out of control.
Addressing a press conference, Dr Faisal said the government was preparing for a potential surge in infections, noting that the capacity of healthcare facilities was being increased.
In a reference to India, where the ongoing peak has faced issues with ensuring oxygen supply for critical for serious patients, he said a special committee of the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) was monitoring the situation in Pakistan.
“If the pandemic surges, the government is planning to bring online additional oxygen plants to ensure there is no shortage,” he disclosed and said the oxygen plant of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) was being examined in this regard.
A day earlier, the NCOC on the recommendation of Prime Minister Imran Khan gave a green signal to the National Engineers Welfare Association, an association of experts affiliated with the PSM, to conduct a preliminary review of the plant.
A team of experts, including those from the Engineering Corps of the army, will make its first visit to the plant today.
“If ours needs reach a critical point, we would also recommend halting oxygen to non-essential industries or even import oxygen supplies to overcome the shortfall,” Dr Faisal said on Tuesday.
In addition to the supply concerns, he said the NCOC was also examining the matter of logistics and transport. “We are reviewing all measures to ensure there is no supply gap,” he said. “The NCOC would issue guidelines on the efficient use of oxygen to curb losses.”
On vaccines, the minister said the government was dependent solely on grants and gifts but was actively procuring and pursuing the jabs. “The government is in the process of purchasing vaccines from three different manufacturers,” he said.
Some 3 million doses had been procured since March 30, while deals for 30 [million] additional doses had already been signed, he said, without disclosing the developers.
“We will also have a transfer of technology to manufacture our own doses of the [Chinese] CanSino vaccine,” he revealed.
The minister said the process of procuring the drug was slow due to their overall shortage around the world. “It does not matter how much money one possesses. If a thing does not exist, you simply cannot buy it,” he said.
“Due to this shortage of the vaccine, vaccine roll out under the COVAX initiative [Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access] had also been delayed,” he said. “Hopefully, the programme would resume as soon as the problem of the vaccine scarcity is resolved.”
So far, more than 2 million doses of vaccines have been administered across the country, he said, urging people to adhere to guidelines to curb the spread of contagion disease.
“Yesterday, 88,000 doses of vaccines were administered,” he said and added the vaccination drive was continuing without any hindrance. The government, he said, has established 22 vaccination centers nationwide, each with a daily capacity of 5,000 inoculations.
“Getting vaccinated is very important but more important is to follow the Covid-19 SOPs. Wear face masks, maintenance a distance of about six feet, do not go outside of the house unnecessarily, and do not roam around in groups,” Dr Faisal said.
He said the nation would have to spend the remaining days of the holy month of Ramadan and celebrate Eid with “utmost simplicity” to avoid the risk of Covid-19 getting out of control.
