Planeload of medical gear arrives in Pakistan to strengthen fight against COVID-19

In this photo, Chinese officials pose in front of medical supplies being sent to Pakistan from China on April 24, 2020. (Courtesy: Chinese Embassy Pakistan)

• Includes ventilators, X-ray machines, PPE masks and gloves flown in from China
• Follows extreme shortage of protective wear for doctors and frontline workers across the country

ISLAMABAD: A consignment of medical equipment arrived from China on Monday to help Pakistan protect its health care workers battling the fight against coronavirus across the country.
“The equipment was purchased from Beijing with the help of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Pakistan’s government,” General Muhammad Afzal, NDMA spokesperson said during an address to the media from outside the Islamabad International Airport on Monday.
The consignment includes 159 ventilators, 15 X-ray machines, 290,000 surgical masks, 15,000 protective medical suits, 30,000 pairs of gloves and medicinal supplies, with $15 million allocated by the NDRMF toward the cause.
“It will enable Pakistan to conduct between 30,000 and 40,000 tests a day soon,” Afzal said, expressing gratitude for the NDRMF and ADB for ensuring the supplies were delivered to Pakistan.
The procurement of the much-needed medical gear comes at a time when Pakistan is grappling with the spread of the virus across the country with more than 13,000 cases reported thus far – a majority of which are from the Sindh and Punjab provinces.
Several doctors and medics are working on the frontlines without any protective gear, making them extremely susceptible to contracting the deadly disease which has killed 281in Pakistan thus far.
According to the Young Doctors Association in Punjab – a group founded in 2008 which lobbies for better working conditions for Pakistan’s medical force – 150 medical professionals have tested positive for the virus, while Dr. Osama Riaz from Gilgit-Baltistan and Dr. Abdul Qadir Soomoro from Karachi lost their lives to the virus after contracting it from their patients.