Eminent doctors of the capital on Saturday suggested more persons be quarantined/isolated and tested to defeat the virus that so far has infected 17 persons in Jharkhand, including one fatally, and put India and virtually the entire world under lockdown.
Noted ophthalmologist and philanthropist of the state Dr Bharti Kashyap, who was among the doctors who met chief minister Hemant Soren on April 8 and suggested the lockdown be extended, said on Saturday: “All hospitals where emergency work is on should be marked as hotspots.”
She also said all hospital staff including sweepers, plumbers, guards, accountants, personnel at the reception, as well as obviously doctors and paramedics, should undergo a rapid antibody test that is affordable and helps in screening. “Hospitals should bear this expense and not the government,” she said.
She added: “The government should hire doctors on contract basis for this communicable disease. Doctors should take every precaution while dealing with patients or those showing symptoms. Each group of doctors should work no more than five days on the trot. They should be then either undergo the rapid antibody test or should be sent on quarantine,” she added.
Her other suggestions included the incorporation of Covid-19 in Ayushman Bharat along with financial support to the poor, and clear-cut guidelines on duty hours for hospital employees who are enjoying the lockdown as an undeclared holiday.
Apart from this, her suggestions include quick discharge of patients who have had their surgery, compulsory entry of patients in the hospital with mask and head cover, use of ‘on hospital duty’ sticker for vehicles used for different types of hospital services, the immediate availability of antibody investigation kits and improving the lines of communication between the state government and Indian Medical Association headquarters in Ranchi.
“I shared my suggestions with the chief minister on April 8 when I along with my husband Dr B.P. Kashyap, besides other doctors of the city had met the chief minister and I hope someone has considered them,” Dr Kashyap said.
Dr Anant Sinha, an alumnus of AFMC, Pune, and director of Dev Kamal Hospital in the capital, said focus should be on the identification of cases.
“The more cases we identify the less the loss will be. This arrangement is a requirement to be done in such a way that early detection is possible. Identify, quarantine and isolate are the major weapons to win the war against the virus,” Dr Sinha said.
RIMS director Dr D.K. Singh on Saturday talked to the junior doctors of RIMS who are in quarantine due to professional compulsions to pass their time properly.
He asked them to study, keep themselves updated with the happenings of the world, exercise and talk to friends over the phone.
“If you need help for your family, let us know. We are aith you,” Dr Singh said in a video call to the quarantined junior doctors.
Coronavirus update
As on Saturday, of the 1,912 samples tested, 1,529 tested negative. Seventeen tested positive, including eight from Ranchi, six from Bokaro, two from Hazaribagh and one from Koderma. The results of 366 samples are awaited.