US donates 100 ventilators to Pak to combat COVID-19 pandemic

Islamabad, July 30

The US on Thursday supplied Pakistan 100 ventilators to assist it battle the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed practically 6,000 lives and contaminated over 277,000 individuals within the nation.

The US embassy in Islamabad mentioned in a press release that the cargo was handed over to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority as a logo of “working together to fight COVID-19”.

The ventilators, supplied via the US Agency for International Development, arrived in Islamabad on July 28 and shall be deployed in hospitals throughout Pakistan, it mentioned.

“The arrival of these ventilators delivers on President Donald Trump’s promise to Prime Minister Imran Khan to stand with the people of Pakistan and bring additional critically needed supplies and support to Pakistan’s urgent response to the pandemic,” the embassy mentioned.

The first batch of 100 ventilators had arrived on July three and has already been delivered to hospitals and healthcare services all through Pakistan.

“The United States is a proud partner with the Government of Pakistan to help stem the tide of this deadly pandemic and these ventilators will help with that fight,” US Ambassador to Pakistan Paul W Jones mentioned.

The ventilators may also be used to supply non-invasive respiratory remedy for sufferers earlier than they develop into critically in poor health and assist keep away from the necessity for extra excessive care.  They will help deal with quite a lot of different respiratory illnesses outdoors of the COVID-19 virus, together with pneumonia and persistent obstructive pulmonary illness (COPD).

Through a specialised coaching programme developed with the National Disaster Management Authority and the Federal and Provincial Ministries of Health, and with funding from USAID, Pakistan can have a stronger arsenal with which to battle COVID-19 and different respiratory sicknesses, mentioned the embassy.

It mentioned that the US-Pakistan partnership within the well being sector was strengthening the nation’s means to battle coronavirus by enhancing and increasing laboratory testing, illness monitoring, case monitoring, an infection prevention and management, and affected person care.

The United States is contributing greater than USD 28 million in new funding to date for COVID-19 response to this important partnership that’s rising day-after-day, the embassy mentioned.

A ventilator takes over the physique’s respiration course of when illness has triggered the lungs to fail. This offers the affected person time to battle off the an infection and recuperate.

Pakistan’s coronavirus tally reached 277,402 with the detection of 1,114 new circumstances, with the nationwide demise toll standing at 5,924, the Ministry of National Health Services mentioned on Thursday. PTI