*Says Govt failed to provide sanitizers for health workers
Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Mar 22: Taking a dig at poor healthcare facilities in Kashmir, Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) today said COVID-19 is an impending threat with high case fatality rate, demanding Government to wake up and designate Coronavirus hospitals in the valley and procure ventilators before it is too late.
President DAK, Dr Suhail Naik said as on March 20, coronavirus virus has been confirmed in more than 265,000 individuals worldwide, caused 11,000 deaths and affected more than 160 countries.
Dr Naik said that there is threat of Covid-19 in Kashmir as one case is already positive from Srinagar and for every one positive case there might be as many as 20 undetected cases in community.
“The restrictions will give ample time to administration to prepare on war footing basis for stage 3. They should upgrade the health system particularly by making available respiratory support system as Covid-19 is primarily a respiratory emergency,” he said.
Dar Naik said that Kashmir has nearly one hundred ventilators and all of them remain occupied at any point of time and it is very difficult for desired patients to get one.
“Our health care system has fragilities and we don’t have even evolved private health sector in Jammu and Kashmir. Now, in addition to the perennial challenge, if we face an immediate crisis we can collapse as an institution. The health infrastructure in Kashmir is overburdened and it can’t take extra load and will crumble with any unprecedented crisis,” he said.
DAK appealed the Government to arrange Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline health workers and N-95 masks.
The doctors’ body said that it is mandatory to frame rotational duty roaster of health workers so that the frontline health force is not exposed to the dreaded virus.
DAK has appealed people to stay indoors and break the transmission chain of Covid-19 saying that it is the only best remedy available with people to save themselves.
Government should also restore 4G internet services so that patients can be examined through video calls and can decrease face to face contact with patients.
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