Islamabad: More than two months after free Hepatitis C screening and treatment began in Islamabad under the Prime Minister’s Hepatitis C Elimination Programme, only 28,691 people, or 1.4 per cent of the target population of 2.1 million, have been screened, while PCR confirmed infection in 682 people.
At the current pace of 28,691 people screened every two months, it would take about 146 months, or more than 12 years, to screen Islamabad’s entire eligible population, raising questions about public awareness and participation in the elimination drive.
Programme data available with The News show that 28,882 people were registered and 28,691 screened. Of them, 2,218, or 7.7 per cent, tested positive in the initial screening, while PCR confirmed the virus in 682 people, or around 2.4 per cent of those screened.
Samples were collected from 2,146 people for confirmatory testing. Treatment has been initiated for 449 PCR-confirmed patients, representing nearly 66 per cent of those found infected, and medicines are being provided free of charge.
Health experts say the relatively low rate of PCR-confirmed infection should not reduce the urgency of mass screening because Hepatitis C can remain silent for years before leading to cirrhosis, liver failure or liver cancer.
Free screening is being offered at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Federal Government Polyclinic, Federal General Hospital, National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, CDA Hospital and six primary healthcare facilities run by the District Health Office Islamabad.
Officials said around 9,924 people had been screened at the six primary healthcare facilities since June 1. Around 600 underwent PCR testing, while approximately one-fourth had so far been initiated on antiviral treatment.
Interviews conducted by this scribe in Super Market, Jinnah Super, Melody, Aabpara, F-10 and F-11, as well as with people on the streets, indicated that many Islamabad residents were unaware that free Hepatitis C screening, confirmatory PCR testing and antiviral treatment were available under the government programme.
Several people said they believed Hepatitis C was caused only by unclean drinking water and felt they were not at risk because they used filtered water. Medical experts say the virus is mainly transmitted through exposure to infected blood, including unsafe or reused injections, inadequately screened blood, and unsterilised medical or dental equipment.
People interviewed said they had neither seen a sustained awareness campaign nor received clear information on where they and their family members could obtain free screening and treatment. The limited awareness appears to be affecting turnout despite the availability of services at public hospitals and primary healthcare facilities.
Speaking at a World Hepatitis Day ceremony in Islamabad last month, Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal had also expressed concern over the slow public response, saying only 21,000 people had come forward for screening during the first month of the campaign.
“Nearly one month has passed, but hardly 21,000 people have got themselves screened. Screening and treatment are completely free, yet people are not coming forward. We cannot force people to get screened at gunpoint,” he had said.
The minister urged people to take responsibility for their health and get themselves and their children screened, saying citizens often criticised governments over health services but ignored preventive measures even when free vaccines, testing and treatment were available.
Pakistan has allocated around Rs68 billion for the national programme, which aims to screen more than 164 million eligible people aged 12 years and above and provide free treatment to those diagnosed with infection. The federal government is directly implementing the programme in Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, while provinces are to expand services in their respective areas.
Former special assistant to the prime minister on health Dr Zafar Mirza said Pakistan, with the world’s largest Hepatitis C burden, could not afford a low-key response to an initiative of such importance.
He said the government needed to urgently strengthen information, education and communication activities so people knew why screening mattered, where it was available and how free treatment could be accessed. Without a strong whole-of-government and whole-of-society campaign, he warned, the programme could remain lukewarm and gradually lose momentum.
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