The government has admitted that the number of patients needing oxygen is far higher than it was last summer.
Pakistani authorities are racing to add more beds and ventilators at hospitals to stave off shortages, but doctors say unless the government can persuade people to be more careful, nothing can stop a health crisis.
At nearby Khyber Teaching Hospital, Dr Jawad Khan said its 150 beds were also all full.
“We can see a sudden spike in patients due to a lack of standard operating procedures (SOPs), like neighbouring India,” he said. Doctors were continuously trying to make available more beds, ventilators and oxygen supplies, “but all depends on preventive measures,” he said.
“The government should make arrests, seal shops and markets along with jail terms and heavy penalties to send a clear message that the violators of SOPs wouldn’t get spared,” he said.
The arrival of new easily spread mutant variants, government complacency and a public refusal to abide by distancing restrictions have all been blamed for India’s crisis.
Pakistan too has struggled to get people to abide by restrictions, leaving ministers to plead with the public to take greater care. Polling has shown that many believe the risk from Covid-19 has been overstated.
Travel from India has been banned, including the closure of the land border at Wagah, and tensions between the neighbours mean there are no direct flights. Yet while officials who have seen sequencing data say there is no sign in Pakistan yet of the “double mutant” variant found in India, the easily transmissible UK variant has taken widespread hold.
Pakistan’s underfunded health system may be even less able to cope with a serious surge of cases than India’s. Both spend little on public health, but Pakistan spends 3.2 per cent of GDP compared with 3.5 per cent in India, according to World Bank figures.
Imran Khan, the prime minister, announced late last week that troops would be deployed to help police enforce distancing rules. The army’s information wing on Monday said soldiers “will go to every corner of Pakistan to ensure the protection of citizens”.
Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar told a press conference: “The primary purpose of deployment of army troops is to help civil institutions and law enforcement agencies.”
He went on: “In this testing time, Pakistan Army will use all its capabilities to take every possible step for the protection of citizens and their lives. [We] will go to every corner of Pakistan to ensure the protection of citizens.”
Health officials welcomed the extra support from the military.
Dr Javid Ali, at Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital, said the deployment was the “right step at the right time”.
“Presently, we need strict enforcement of the precautionary measures as the hospitals, it seems, would soon be overwhelmed by patients.”
Protect yourself and your family by learning more about Global Health Security