PESHAWAR: Two doctors of the Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) Peshawar have resigned over lack of proper arrangements for protection from coronavirus.

A spokesperson for the LRH confirmed the development and said the doctors have resigned in the backdrop of coronavirus. The spokesperson said the healthcare professionals misled to the people about coronavirus and tried leading them astray about its implications and contraction. According to the spokesperson, the matter arose on non-availability of beds for quarantined isolation of patients.

As many as 77 staff members of LRH, including doctors, have contracted the virus so far. The LRH administration has called upon the provincial Health Department to provide 830 personal protective equipment kits on daily basis. The hospital administration said the health staff is in grave danger of contracting coronavirus. It said 65 emergency surgeries of patients are conducted in the hospital on daily basis. It said the situation may go from bad to worse if protective equipment was not provided to health staff.

On May 05, the gynaecology section of the largest public sector hospital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was closed after some doctors, nurses and other health staff were diagnosed with coronavirus.

According to the administration of the LRH, the coronavirus tests of at least 35 staff members of gynaecology department, including doctors, nurses and others, came back as positive after which the section was closed temporarily.

The hospital administration said that one assistant professor, 14 TMOs, three house officers, two head nurses, aya and sweepers of gynaecology section were diagnosed with novel coronavirus. It said arrangements for quarantine of the affected staff were made. It said all the family members of the infected health staff were also tested.

According to data issued by the Health Department, at least 177 doctors, nurses and paramedical staff members have tested positive for coronavirus in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The affected patients include 89 doctors, 48 nurses and 40 members of paramedical staff and Class-IV employees. The number of women affected doctors is higher as compared to male doctors.

According to the Young Doctors Association (YDA), 48 members of the nursing staff had been tested positive in the province.