Coronavirus Cases Approach 8,000: Dr. Zafar Mirza Advises Against Speculation On Deaths

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr. Zafar Mirza has taken the view that it accounting for all deaths occurring in Karachi as Covid-19 cases would be premature. In his comments to the media on Friday, he had said that speculation should be avoided, since only laboratory tests can indicate the true cause of deaths.

On the morning of 19 April, Pakistan has a total of 7,993 confirmed cases of infection by the novel Coronavirus. Of the confirmed cases of infection, Punjab accounts for 3,649, Sindh for 2,355, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa for 1,137, Balochistan for 376, the federal capital Islamabad for 171, Gilgit-Baltistan for 257 and Azad Jammu and Kashmir for 48.

The total number of confirmed deaths from COVID-19 is 159 at the moment, of which Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa accounts for the greatest number (60).

Dr. Zafar Mirza noted that the federal government was issuing an advisory for doctors and nurses working in hospital emergencies. This would help them in addressing mysterious death-on-arrival cases, what precautions to take if a patient is suspected of having the Coronavirus and which tests to conduct. “A strategy has been devised in collaboration with the Sindh government,” he added.