Under normal times, this week would have been the season of joy, festivity and celebrations for Christmas and the New Year. However, the discovery of the new variant of concern Omicron last month in the African continent, which has spread like wildfire across the globe, has not only put the brakes on our celebrations but has also called for tougher measures to protect the citizens.
We should not forget the dark days of Covid-19 first and second waves, which wreaked a havoc and brought misery to our country and the planet. We certainly should not forget the selfless noble work done by the medical profession, healthcare workers and the frontline workers who bore the brunt of the corona onslaught and unfortunately many of them paid the ultimate price by sacrificing their lives in their fight against coronavirus.
While remembering these warriors and their sacrifices for the nation, we should make sure that this grave tragedy does not repeat in the future. It seems very clear that Omicron is a lot more infectious though not as virulent as the Delta variant. It is spreading like wildfire across the globe and it is but a matter of time before the numbers in India go up exponentially in the near future. Many experts, who have looked at models to predict the pandemic, believe that we may touch 100,000 to 150,000 cases per day by February next year, which means that we need to be on a war footing right now.
To protect our healthcare workers, doctors, nurses, paramedical personnel and frontline workers such as ambulance drivers, lab technicians, public healthcare and sanitation workers, we need to strictly follow a few measures.
Following Covid-Appropriate Behaviour, Public Health Measures
Reinforce Covid-appropriate behaviour amongst all citizens such as masking, social distancing, hand washing and avoid going to crowded places especially in poor ventilated indoor areas. It has been shown time and again that these measures provide a significant protection against the spread of any form of Covid and should be mandated for the sake of health of not only individuals but society at large. There should be a huge penalty for people breaking the rules so that they take this very seriously.
Vaccination for All
We must continue with the aggressive vaccination policy so that most of the eligible population is vaccinated at the earliest. So far, we have fully vaccinated more than 60% of the eligible population and we must increase the numbers to over 80% at least.
Get rid of vaccine hesitancy and make vaccination mandatory for all healthcare and frontline workers. It’s a welcome move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to announce the booster or the precautionary dose for the healthcare and frontline workers with some other high-risk groups. I strongly urge these groups to avail this opportunity to receive the third dose.
Reorientation and Training
During the first Covid wave, many healthcare workers were infected and unfortunately some succumbed to the illness because personal protection measures were inadequate, poorly practised and, in some instances, unavailable and there was no vaccination available.
A better understanding of the personal protection measures, including appropriate masks, use of PPE, other infection control measures, and availability of the vaccine helped the healthcare workers mitigate the massive onslaught of the second wave.
It is again time to reorient our healthcare workers and reinforce these measures to protect them against future waves. Infection control measures in the hospital that were implemented during the massive second wave included screening and restriction of visitors, social distancing in general areas and elevators, promoting video consultations to cut down on personal visits to limit the exposure of the healthcare workers. Similar measures will have to be re-instituted with full vigour again, in view of the impending third wave.
Healthcare Insurance, Access to Treatment
No frontline worker should be without an insurance and they should have, if needed, the best of healthcare including recent treatment options, such as monoclonal antibody cocktails, oral pills like Paxlovid (Pfizer) and molnupiravir (Merck) approved abroad for early treatment of Covid.
Counselling Facilities
One of the important lessons not be forgotten from the earlier two waves is that there was a huge amount of stress and anguish among the healthcare workers about their safety and of their families. This needs to be addressed by experienced mental health caregivers not only for the healthcare workers but also their families. Counselling in general is a crucial aspect of overall care during the pandemic and should not be forgotten. This should be an important part of HR activities during difficult times.
All in all, it appears that Omicron is very likely to bring in a third wave in our country in the next few weeks and we have to be fully geared up to meet this eventuality. The measures listed would surely protect the health of the caregivers and keep them safe to fight the invisible enemy and save lives.
As much as all of us have developed serious Covid fatigue, this is no time for complacency or letting our guard down. I am sure that if we fight this scourge together with a strong will, we shall emerge victorious soon.
Dr Sudarshan Ballal is Chairman, Manipal Hospitals. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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