Coronavirus Update: Deaths at homes rise

By Mukhtar Alam
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Amidst growing concern over healthcare delivery to COVID-19 patients kept in home isolation, the Sindh health authorities reported five more deaths among such patients on May 7 when 453 new infection cases were also registered across the province. 

A study of the relevant official data revealed that as many as 60 home- based coronavirus positive patients have lost their lives across the province so far. On average three of the patients advised to stay in isolation at homes died every day during a period from May 2 to 7, against five patients dying every day at the government designated health settings during the same period in the province. 

Against the deaths of people isolated at homes, the tertiary care hospitals and some specially designed coronavirus treatment centres collectively reported 111 deaths since March 20 when the first coronavirus related death was reported in Sindh.

A hospital-wise breakdown of COVID-19 deaths was found as: DUHS Ojha Hospital (23), Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre Karachi (21), Aga Khan University Hospital (20), Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (19), Indus Hospital (11), Civil Hospital Karachi (4), PNS Shifa (4), LUMHS Hospital Hyderabad (3), Gambat Institute of Medical Sciences, Khairpur (2), Combined Military Hospital Hyderabad (1), NICVD Karachi (1), Saifee Hospital Karachi (1) and Ziauddin Hospital Karachi (1). 

Commenting over the deaths at home, a couple of senior physicians accessed by this scribe, stated that at a time when there were less doctors to see more patients at hospitals thinking of any quality care delivery to people isolating at homes with coronavirus was not appropriate for the time being. 

A public sector physician, requesting anonymity, shared that the infected people preferred to stay at homes in view of factors including the impression that the hospitals were already saturated, the myth that the virus disease was a self-resolving issue, the apprehension that most of the hospitals were already being run in mess while lacking the expertise, willful staff and supporting intensive care units. 

However, by the time they decided to present themselves at hospitals it becomes too late, the doctor added, saying the way patients were being ‘monitored’ at homes also needed to be improved, while ensuring dignity and safety in the case of home-based patients and their family members. 

“The surveillance officer should know the art of pronouncing the emerging adversities among the patients in home isolation timely and have the ability of lining up the relevant corona treatment hospitals for a safe transportation of the patients to hospitals from homes.”

Dr Samreena Hashmi, a former president of Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), Sindh, observed that the comorbid like old age, diabetes, hypertension, previous lung diseases including bronchiectasis, and not an up to the mark maintenance of the coronavirus patients at homes were among the reasons behind their deaths. 

Moreover, they may have been in isolation at home as they don’t want to go into the government hospitals due to social pressures, bad conditions prevailing in those centres, which could be seen in different videos on social media, the senior physician, who had also been the head of the PMA’s science and research committee, remarked. 

In the meantime, the Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah, in a message said that there were 5,858 people isolated at home for COVID-19 infections, while 683 were in isolation centres and 528 admitted at private and public hospitals. 

According to the official reports, two patients staying in home isolation died on May 3, another four on May 4, followed by four on May 5, four on May 6 and five on May 7. 

As per the health department’s daily corona summary updated on May 7 at 8 am, in all 14 COVID-19 patients died at homes and hospitals, four private and three public hospitals, taking the total number of deaths to 171. 

Of the deceased patients 12, including a female, in the age brackets of 57 to 81 died in Karachi hospitals, while one male of 62 years lost his life in Hyderabad and a female of 64 years died at Sukkur. 

In all 3,534 samples were tested during the last 24 hours ending at 8 am on May 7, out of which 453 were found positive for coronavirus, taking the tally of infection to 9,093 for the province. As many as 1,853 recovered from the diseases so far. 

The number of COVID-19 cases rose to 6,893 in Karachi, with 358 new infections and overall death tally 150 deaths. Larkana reported 35 new cases, followed by Khairpur (16) new cases, Sukkur (12), Hyderabad (9), Kahsmore (8), Sanghar (3), Tando Mohammad Khan (3), Jacobabad (2) while Shaheed Benazirabad, Sujawal, Kambar Shahdadkot, and Shikarpur reported new case each.