Hospital at centre of child HIV outbreak caught reusing syringes in undercover filming

Hospital at centre of child HIV outbreak caught reusing syringes in undercover filming

Following months of investigation, BBC Eye has uncovered unsafe practices at a hospital in Taunsa, Punjab, Pakistan, where children were potentially exposed to HIV through contaminated needles. The probe, conducted during 32 hours of covert observation in late 2025, revealed repeated reuse of syringes on multi-dose vials, risking the spread of the virus among patients.

Mohammed Amin, an eight-year-old boy, died shortly after his HIV diagnosis, while his 10-year-old sister Asma was also infected. Their mother, Sughra, described Mohammed’s symptoms as “like he’d been thrown in hot oil,” and Asma recounted her brother’s struggle. Both children were treated at THQ Taunsa Hospital, which has been linked to a broader outbreak affecting 331 children between November 2024 and October 2025.

“Even if they have attached a new needle, the back part, which we call the syringe body, has the virus in it, so it will transfer even with a new needle,” said Dr Altaf Ahmed, a consultant microbiologist and infectious disease expert.

A local private clinic doctor, Dr Gul Qaisrani, first noticed the spike in pediatric HIV cases in late 2024. He reported that most of the 65 to 70 children he diagnosed had received treatment at THQ Taunsa. One mother told him her daughter was injected with the same syringe as a relative with HIV, and the tool was reused on multiple patients. Qaisrani claims a father challenged the practice but was dismissed by hospital staff.

Local authorities initially vowed to address the issue, suspending the hospital’s medical superintendent in March 2025. However, the undercover footage showed that unsafe injection methods persisted. Staff, including a doctor, were filmed using non-sterile gloves 66 times, and a nurse accessed medical waste without proper protection. “She is violating every principle of injecting medicine,” remarked another expert after reviewing the evidence.

Despite signs promoting safe procedures, the hospital’s new superintendent, Dr Qasim Buzdar, dismissed the footage as possibly staged or recorded before his tenure. He insisted the facility was safe for children, contradicting the findings. Meanwhile, data from the Punjab provincial Aids screening programme lists “contaminated needle” as the transmission method for over half of the 331 cases, including Asma’s. Only four of 97 tested children’s mothers were HIV-positive, suggesting limited mother-to-child spread.

THQ Taunsa’s former medical superintendent, Dr Tayyab Farooq Chandio, was replaced by Buzdar after being suspended. Chandio later stated he took immediate action upon learning of an HIV case but denied the hospital was the outbreak’s origin. His involvement with children resumed at a rural health centre within three months of his suspension.