Rabies kills more people in Pakistan than it should, and the reason is almost always delay -- looking for a vaccine, going to the wrong hospital, or waiting to see whether the animal was rabid.
The part that is not negotiable: once symptoms start it is essentially always fatal, and the treatment only works before that.
What people are told to do:
- Wash the wound with soap under running water for a full fifteen minutes, immediately. This alone reduces the risk substantially and almost nobody does it for long enough.
- Go to a hospital the same day for post-exposure vaccination. Do not wait to observe the animal.
- Deep or facial bites, and bites from an unknown animal, may also need immunoglobulin, which is far harder to find and expensive.
- Report where it happened.
The practical questions for this thread:
- Which hospitals in your city actually stock the vaccine? People are still sent from one to another.
- Has anyone been through PEP recently, and what did it involve?
- For dog owners: is your dog's rabies shot current, and what did it cost? A dog vaccine runs roughly Rs 1,000-2,500 a dose depending on clinic and brand, and it protects your family as much as the dog.