Young Doctor from Gilgit-Baltistan working with Coronavirus patients shifted to ICU

A young doctor from the Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan has been shifted to an intensive care unit (ICU) after he contracted coronavirus while working with affected patients. The doctor named Usama Riaz was on-duty in Jaglot town some 45 km from Gilgit where he contracted the coronavirus disease.

Dr. Usama Riaz has been admitted to District Headquarter Hospital DHQ, Gilgit. Initial reports suggest that he has brain damage with little chances of recovery.

The government has set up a quarantine center for the Zaireen who have recently come from Iran through the Taftan border.

According to Dr. Ejaz Ayub, the president of the Gilgit-Baltistan Young Doctors Association, the government has failed to provide safety kits to the doctors and paramedics working with the Zaireen kept in isolation many of whom are suspected of carrying the Coronavirus disease.

Talking to a press conference in Gilgit, Dr. Ejaz Ayub said that doctors and paramedics are working closely with the Coronavirus patients despite the unavailability of safety kits.

The active Coronavirus disease cases in Pakistan are rising and expected to grow over the next few months. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease (COVID-19).