Six months after the coronavirus arrived in Pakistan, the country appears to have made the epidemic worse, health experts are puzzled, and its frightened urban areas and ramshackle hospitals will be brought’ under control.
Since the initial increase, the number of infections
has dropped in recent weeks, with coyote-19 deaths hovering at every single
digit, while neighboring India has seen hundreds of deaths.
Pakistan has a long history of failing to
control a number of infectious diseases such as polio, tuberculosis and
hepatitis, while successive governments have funded its healthcare sector for
decades.
In addition, many Pakistanis live in
crowded, multi-generational houses or apartment buildings in favor of hasty
transmission of the virus.
"No one is able to explain this
shortcoming ... we have no concrete explanation," said Dr Salman Haseeb of
Services Hospital in the eastern city of Lahore. "
Pakistanis have shown their ability to
control the epidemic in their country. Numerous hypotheses have been proposed’ which
give credence to the invincible claims of natural immunity to everything from
the young population and the hot and humid climate.
He is only 22 years old and the
coronavirus is known’ to infect older people disproportionately with
health-related complications.
In comparison, more than 35,000 deaths
were recorded’ in Italy at the age of 46.5 years, while the official death toll
in Pakistan is about 6,300.
To date, the South Asian country has
confirmed more than 295,000 infections and is currently recording a few hundred
new cases.
Observers say the actual number of
infections is much higher than just a limited number of tests. A testing
exercise in Lahore said that about 7% of the city's population is at risk of
contracting the virus.
But conclusive evidence from hospitals
across Pakistan supports the downward trend.
Initially, when healthcare facilities have
changed, doctors across Pakistan told AFP that they no longer see the corona
virus rush in emergency services.
"Regardless of the cause, the good
thing is that the first wave of the virus in Pakistan is almost gone,"
said Dr. Khizr Hayat of Nishtar Hospital in the central city of Multan.
"The situation is under control now
and the number of corona virus cases is declining. The wards are getting empty.
It is difficult to know why."
- 'Smart' lockdown -
A flat curve is more interesting to
consider how the coronavirus infected India, with a median age of 26 years and
a similar population in crowded cities.
Over the weekend, India set a new world
record for the highest number of daily infections, with 78,761 new infections
recorded in 24 hours, while Delhi is testing at a much higher rate than
Islamabad.
India has also reported more than 64,000
deaths - the third highest in the world after the United States and Brazil.
Since filing its first lawsuit in late
February, Pakistan has responded to the epidemic, with loose locks that later
turned, while mobs abandoned social distance guidelines and even in markets and
mosques. Started to go
Nevertheless, Prime Minister Imran Khan's
government has accelerated this progress, crediting itself with
"smart" lockdown policies and other measures, although they were,
often not’ implemented.
Last month, after several weeks of new
cases, Pakistani authorities lifted most of the country's corona virus
restrictions.
Restaurants and parks have reopened as
people return to the theaters, malls, and public transport closer to the
crowds. Schools and universities are set to reopen in late September.
Masks have become increasingly rare,
raising expert warnings to be wary of a second wave of experts.
Hassan Waseem, a microbiologist based in
Pakistan, warned, "People think we've defeated Covid-19, but I believe
there is still a possibility of another wave."
However, other doctors suspect an epidemic
is on the rise in the country.
"I would hesitate to say that there
will be no second wave in Pakistan. Most urban centers in Pakistan, such as
Lahore and Karachi, are already in the worst case scenario for the
coronavirus." And infectious diseases in the Chughtai lab.
"People should also understand that
(the virus) is not completely gone," he added. "Precautions should be
taken."
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