Public and private hospitals, ambulance services, scouts and girls guide, departments like Health, Revenue, SESSI, KMC, Water Board, Local Administration, K-Electric and MET Office should be taken onboard to counter the severe heat wave that likely to hit Karachi in May and June this year.
At least three control rooms will be established to monitor the situation and all departments concerned will submit a high level contingency plan to combat heat wave. This was decided in a meeting chaired by Sindh Health Minister Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar at Sindh Assembly Committee Room here, said a statement on Monday. Meanwhile all rehabilitation centers will be linked to a big hospital concerned.
Speaking at the meeting, Sindh Health Minister Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar directed the officials concerned to launch health alert system through mobile messages with a view to avert loss of life. Dahar directed DHOs and MSs to enhance capacity building of health care staff, community participation and volunteer services and to establish a task force consisting of PDMA, Health, local administration, scouts / girls guide, MET Office, Traffic Police and private ambulances services etc.
With the implementation of preventative and risk reduction strategies the loss of lives can be curtailed and if we work together whole heartedly we can avert deaths, he concluded. Secretary Health Dr Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo, Deputy Commissioners of six districts, all Medical Superintendents (MSs) of Government hospitals, DHOs, representatives of education and other departments also attended the meeting. Preventive measures were focused in the meeting and it was also decided that short courses, regarding how to treat heat wave patients to be conducted, a massive awareness drive through electronic and print media would also be launched. The list of rehabilitation centres would be published in the leading newspapers. Water, ambulances and availability of basic medicines would be provided at these camps and it would be ensured that heat stroke affected patients might be treated at nearest centre and not to refer to big hospital to save time and lives of the patients.