SHC seeks reports on alleged HIV outbreak at Karachi hospital

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has asked the provincial health secretary and the Sindh police chief to submit a detailed report after a petition was filed over an alleged HIV outbreak at a Karachi hospital said to be linked to contaminated syringe reuse and medical negligence.

The petition was moved by citizen Tariq Mansoor and heard by a two-member bench comprising Justice Adnanul Karim Memon and Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry. In a written order seen by Dawn, the bench said the matter stemmed from “the reported HIV outbreak at Kulsum Bai Valika SESSI Hospital, SITE, Karachi, allegedly caused by the reuse of contaminated syringes and gross medical negligence, resulting in the infection of approximately 84 to over 200 children, with several reported fatalities.”

The court order also noted that Kulsum Bai Valika SESSI Hospital is a public hospital operating under the Sindh Employees Social Security Institution and is responsible for providing medical facilities. The petition raised concerns over the reported scale of infections among children and the circumstances in which the outbreak allegedly took place.

Following the hearing, the SHC sought responses from the health secretary and the police chief on the matter. The case centres on allegations presented in the petition regarding the reported outbreak at the SITE hospital and the role of hospital practices that, according to the plea, may have led to the infections.