When Health Minister KK Shailaja Prepared Kerala To Battle Covid-19, The Entire World Took Note

It is not every day that the world looks at something that is happening in India, especially in the health sector, and says, this is what the rest of the world also should do. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is happening and the international media is drooling over an Indian's effort to contain the deadly outbreak.

From BBC to Washington Post and The Guardian, international media from around the world have been showering praises on Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja, for her steadfast actions in the face of the pandemic.

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Over the past few weeks, KK Shailaja or Shailaja Teacher as she is fondly called, have been given other names like Corona Slayer and Kerala's Rockstar Health Minister by international media who it seems can't have enough of her.

While it came as a surprise to many, for people of Kerala, it was not, because just two years ago she almost single-handedly led Kerala in its fight against Nipah, another virus outbreak, which like COVID-19 had no cure, but had a much higher mortality rate.

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But the quick action of the health system in Kerala prevented it from spiraling out of control and kept the deaths to just 17. These efforts won praises from across the world including from the WHO.

Fast forward two years, and when the world was still scrambling for answers on how to deal with COVID-19, the former High School science teacher had a well thought-out plan ready. Like in the case of Nipah, COVID-19 too spread through contact with infected patients and it was important to identify all high-risk contacts.

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When the first cases were reported in Kerala, the health department had prepared route maps of the patients since their arrival in the state, which helped to identify and isolate every single person who came into contact with them.

According to Shailaja Teacher, the state was already prepared for COVID-19 long before it hit the state. In a recent interview with The Guardian, Shailaja Teacher said she first read about the virus in China and asked an official if we have to be worried, the answer was yes, it was only a matter of time.

As feared, the first wave of COVID-19 in Kerala came from where it all began - Wuhan, China. Three medical students who had returned from Wuhan were the first to test positive for COVID-19 in Kerala, this was back on January 30, long before it started wreaking havoc around the world.

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Kerala declared COVID-19 a 'state calamity' and swung into action. While the three eventually recovered, Shailaja and her team continued their vigil and it paid off. In March when like the rest of India, Kerala too started seeing a spike in the number of cases, mostly on those returning from abroad.

Kerala which has a high expat population could have easily become another Maharashtra or Gujarat. But the state has recorded an unparalleled success, in containing the outbreak, with just 643 cases so far. What is even more impressive is the recovery and mortality rate in Kerala. 497 people including elderly and those with multiple health complications have already recovered in Kerala and there have been just 4 deaths, including one Mahe resident who was brought to Kannur for treatment. (Mahe falls under the UT of Puducherry).

KK Shailaja Teacher

Despite the success so far, Shailaja and her team who spend most of their day monitoring the developments in the state is not in a celebratory mood and keeps on reminding people that any careless act could bring the virus back.