Seven Doctors Test Positive For COVID-19 In Delhi, When Will We Learn To Value Their Services?

On the evening of March 22, the entire country came out to cheer and show their appreciation for the frontline workers, including doctors, nurses, sanitation workers and other essential service providers who are putting themselves at high risk due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

BCCL

But the tokenism apart, those at the frontline of the battle against COVID-19 has been, fighting a battle of their own - to get adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep themselves safe.

REUTERS

So far in Delhi alone, seven doctors working in different hospitals have tested positive for the disease. This includes two resident doctors at Safdarjung hospital, one each in Delhi State Cancer Institute and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Chest hospital, two mohalla clinic doctors and a doctor working in a private clinic.

Doctors and nurses have been complaining for long about the lack of basic protective gear including N95 masks.

AFP

It had reached a point where four contractual doctors at Hindu Rao Hospital resigned after their demand for PPEs were not met. The hospital administration, however, clarified on Wednesday that no resignation would be accepted and necessary action taken against the doctors and nurses.

¡°In view of COVID 19 pandemic outbreak, resignations of the doctors or nurses will not be accepted and their names will be sent to Delhi Medical Council office and Nursing Council of India for disciplinary action,¡± read the office order signed by CMO, administration, Hindu Rao Hospital.

(1) This order was issued against directions of DHA and without the knowledge of Additional Commissioner abd Commissioner. Disciplinary action will be taken for this disobedience.
(2) From my side, ANY unwilling worker is MORE than welcome to resign. Especially in a pandemic. https://t.co/GEiPaPOOhD

¡ª Varsha Joshi (@suraiya95) April 1, 2020

(4) The only remotely covid related activity presently going on in HRH is screening, for which more than enough PPE kits are available. More PPE kits are being procured directly from the manufacturers. We will evidently never undertake any activity which risks our staff.

¡ª Varsha Joshi (@suraiya95) April 1, 2020

Other than doctors, 15 medical staff members from Delhi's Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital have been quarantined after they got exposed to a COVID-19 patient. None of them have been declared positive so far. On Monday, the Centre had said that it was trying to procure bulk quantities PPEs domestically and from South Korea and China.

On Wednesday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that Rs 1 crore will be given to the family of a health care professional if he or she died while dealing with coronavirus patients. Kejriwal made the announcement while addressing the concerns of city doctors through video-conferencing and lauded them by saying that they were no less than soldiers fighting on the borders.

AFP

He said that just as his government is giving Rs 1 crore to the family of security personnel who die on duty, families of doctors, nurses, paramedical staff and sanitation workers will also be given an equal amount if they died while dealing with corona patients.

¡°The amount is nothing compared with the efforts you are putting in. But this will be the country¡¯s way of thanking you for your services and showing that we respect your efforts,¡± Kejriwal said, adding even Rs 100 crore is nothing before the efforts made by the medical professionals.

¡°Whether they are from private or government sector - it doesn¡¯t matter. Their families will be provided Rs 1 crore each as a mark of respect for their services,¡± he said.