End blame game, act jointly against Covid-19, say speakers.

KARACHI -- One can't stop the Covid-19 pandemic, but its destructive impact can be significantly reduced by strictly following precautionary measures. The nation must show seriousness and act against the disease before it's too late.

This was stated by speakers at a webinar organised on Monday by the Islamic Medical Learners Associations (IMLA).

Speaking at the event titled 'Current situation of Covid-19 and our responsibility', Dow University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Prof Mohammad Saeed Quraishy said international experts had declared the month of August as a peak time for the coronavirus and feared that it might cause up to 80,000 deaths.

'We can't stop this destructive pandemic, but we can reduce chances of mortalities by strictly adhering to standard operating procedures (SOPs) and preventive guidelines,' he said while citing example of Vietnam, where the government enforced SOPs and the people began wearing masks early in February.

'And the result was that the epidemic could hardly affect 700 to 800 people there. In our case where the situation has gone from bad to worse, the majority of people are still not convinced about the benefit of using masks. This level of carelessness can increase the likelihood of extensive damage to public health dramatically,' he said.

Referring to a report by UK experts, he said they had expressed concern over the deteriorating coronavirus situation in Pakistan.

'Patients' numbers are constantly increasing. Without wearing masks and following other SOPs, we will not be able to protect ourselves.'

Dr Quraishy...