KARACHI, August 9, 2019: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed today between Sindh Healthcare Commission (SHCC) and Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Society of Pakistan (MMIDSP). Through this agreement, healthcare workers and physicians practicing in clinics and hospitals in Karachi and other parts of Sindh province, will be offered training in basic principles of Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and waste disposal. IPC training sessions for community-based workers and LHWs will also be offered on a regular basis. It is hoped that this endeavor would inculcate safe practicing habits among healthcare workers and protect both healthcare professionals and patients from exposure to infectious material and hazardous waste.
Infection Control awareness is generally lacking throughout the Sindh healthcare system. Government hospitals have poor standards of Infection Control, serve people of a lower socio-economic strata and have high patient volumes. Moreover, there are no mechanisms in place for monitoring and quantifying the incidence of healthcare related infections in public and private hospitals and other healthcare facilities, which would be useful data towards increasing awareness and devising strategies for their containment and control.
Lack of appropriate training combined with absence of adequate hand hygiene facilities and personal protective equipment, fragmented hospital waste disposal plans; insufficient knowledge and casual attitudes towards infection control continue to contribute to healthcare-associated infections and spread of infections like TB and HIV. The current perilous situation is a direct consequence of a lack of Infection Control infrastructure in most government-run and private hospitals.
MMIDSP is committed to disseminate awareness and knowledge within the communities, of common infections and their prevention. MMIDSP team consists of highly qualified Infectious Diseases physicians, Clinical Microbiologists and nurses who are trained in IPC.
SHCC is making serious efforts to raise safety standards in the healthcare facilities operating in the Sindh province. In response to the need identified by SHCC, MMIDSP has taken upon itself the responsibility of training and updating physicians and healthcare professionals in principles and practices of infection prevention within healthcare facilities in Sindh and in other parts of Pakistan.
