Final-year medicos may join virus war

Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:27.03.2020

In urgent measures to ramp up medical capacity to tackle any sharp rise in Covid-19 cases, the government is considering facilitating fifth-year MBBS students and retired but practising doctors to help in managing patients if necessary.

The ministry and the Board of Governors in Supersession of Medical Council of India (BoG-MCI) is looking at senior medical students being given a provisional permit to practise and manage Covid-19 cases, sources said.

The suggestions include allowing specialist doctors in vital specialities like anaesthesiology, pulmonology, cardiology and radiology who are waiting to appear for the final exam with a “Board Eligible” degree so that they assist in medical management. They could be “Board Certified”. Estimates show there are around 50,000 such specialist doctors who can play a significant role in critical care management if the number of hospitalization cases of Covid-19 increases in coming weeks. The proposal also includes relaxing norms and giving temporary licence to those who have pursued medical education from foreign universities in Russia and China and are waiting to clear MCI’s eligibility test. Such doctors can be allowed to work in hospitals under senior doctors to tackle the current situation.

‘Rate of increase relatively stable’

Stressing on the need to maintain strict vigil during the lockdown, the government on Thursday said the rate of increase in Covid-19 positive cases has “relatively stabilised” in the last few days. The health ministry reported 88 new cases, taking the total to 694. Though the number of cases is increasing, there is a relatively stable trend in the rate of increase, health ministry joint secretary Lav Agarwal said.

Govt augmenting testing facilities and labs despite focus on isolation

Health minister Harsh Vardhan is understood to have asked NITI Aayog member V K Paul — who also heads the BoG-MCI — to review the proposal, sources in the ministry said.

The proposal is crucial as it has the potential to address the shortage of doctors, mainly specialists in the country. Such doctors along with nurses and paramedics are absolutely essential to tackle any community spread of the disease.

Though India’s strategy against Covid-19 is focused on breaking the chain of transmission, there are concerns over a rise in mortality and critical care infrastructure to tackle the menace.

The government and the BoG has already legalized telemedicine and issued guidelines for the same in order to make healthcare accessible in remote areas as well as decongest hospitals from other consultations.

Around 17 states have started working at dedicated Covid-19 hospitals. Besides, the government has also earmarked beds for isolation and treatment of Covid-19 patients in both public and private hospitals.

Despite a focus on isolation to break the chain of transmission, the government is simultaneously augmenting its testing facilities and laboratories.

Currently, there are 119 public laboratories under the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) capable of conducting 12,000 Covid-19 tests every day.

Besides, the council has also approved 25 private labs with over 20,000 collection centres to test Covid-19 suspected patients across the country.