Doctors and paramedics put out of action, experts fear pressure on healthcare infrastructure

NEW DELHI: As India witnesses the third wave of Covid-19 led by Omicron variant, a large number of frontline workers, including doctors, paramedics, police and health department officials, in several cities across the country are turning out to be Covid positive. Experts have voiced concern that this might put pressure on the healthcare infrastructure.

In Delhi, 68 healthcare workers, including 15 doctors, at AIIMS and 49 health staff at Safdarjung reported positive. Lady Hardinge Medical College, Ram Manohar Lohia, Hindu Rao, Lok Nayak and Ambedkar hospitals have also reported multiple cases among their staff members.

At Lucknow's Medanta Hospital, 33 health workers, including one emergency medical officer (EMO), turned out to be Covid positive. Director Dr Rakesh Kapoor said, "Except for the EMO, all the others were nurses or nursing assistants. They all were asymptomatic at the time of testing. No patient or attendant has been affected because of them."

In Patiala's Government Medical College and Hospital, the authorities made students vacate hostels after over 105 faculty members and students, including 18 senior doctors and 48 junior residents, tested positive.

In Gaya, altogether 102 medicos at Anugrah Narayan Magadh Medical College and Hospital (ANMMCH) tested positive on Tuesday. ANMMCH principal Arjun Chaudhary said offline classes have been suspended and the library has also been closed. "All the medicos, who have tested positive, are in isolation," he said.

The surge of cases hasn't spared other frontline workers, including policemen and bureaucrats. Around a dozen police personnel, including additional director generals and inspector generals, have tested positive in Jharkahnd.

Four IAS officers of Gujarat cadre, including two health & family welfare department officials, also tested positive.

In Chhattisgarh, IG Sanjeev Shukla and DIGs Vineet Khanna and Rajesh Agrawal tested positive. The authorities fear a spurt of Corona cases in the police HQ. In Maoist-hit Kanker district of Chhattisgarh, five SSB personnel were found infected in Kanhargaon on Tuesday, to add to the 38 CoBRA commandos who tested positive in Sukma on Monday.