Rajnish Sareen
Nawanshahr, April 04 ,2020:
Taking an emotional note of the allegedly false propaganda that the private doctors and hospitals have shut the OPDs to deny healthcare services to the people during the present crisis due to COVID 19 epidemic, Dr. Paramjit Mann, Secretary, Indian Medical Association(IMA), Punjab, said that the IMA, Punjab had voluntarily extended the wholehearted support to the state government to shoulder the responsibility of fighting COVID 19.
" The IMA, Punjab has just been discouraging OPD service to maintain social distancing to check community spread. But, it does not mean that the private doctors and hospitals have been running away from their responsibility of providing healthcare facilities to their patients. The private doctors and hospitals have consistently been providing the free of cost healthcare facility to public through telephone and Whatsapp. Only those patients are being asked to visit clinics and hospitals who could not be treated through " Tele-medicine". Moreover, the doctors and paramedical staff at private hospitals have been dealing emergencies while keeping all the precautions to check spread of the Corona virus", said the state secretary of IMA. Punjab while adding that as per the available information the DMC( Cardiac Centre), Ludhiana had provided consultation and telemedicine facility to as many as 20175 cardiac patients so far during the Lock-down period.
Besides, " COVID 19 App " for extending Telemedicine facility has also been prepared for the convenience of the public. The doctors , so far, has provided facility of telemedicine to more than 1000 patients on this App. A list of 570 doctors and the available facility of about more than 300 ventilators has also been provided to the government and the concerned administrative authorities at the district level to tackle any emergent situation, he further added.
Moreover, a team of doctors comprising Dr. SK Sukhi, ENT Surgeon and Banga MLA , Dr. Navjot Dahiya, DR. Paramjit Mann, Dr. B.S. Bal, State president ,secretary and joint secretary of IMA, Dr. SPS Sooch, former state IMA president, Dr Kulwinder Maan, Dr. Jagmohan Puri, Dr. Amarinder Saini, Dr. Ranjiv Kumar, Dr Sameer Sharma , Dr Harminder Singh, have visited the sealed villages including Pathlawa , which has witnessed the first death due to Corona virus in Punjab and a number of positive Corona cases, in Banga sub division of Nawanshahr district.
A medical check up camp, under the aegis of IMA, was organised there by the team of doctors. More than 50 patients were examined and medicines were given free of cost.
The doctors also interacted with the people and sensitised them regarding the precautions and preventive measures to check the spread of the dreaded Corona virus.
"The IMA, Punjab has proactively held meetings with the Health Minister, B.S.Sidhu, the principal secretary, Anurag Aggarwal and the Nawanshahr DC,Vinay Bublani and assured wholehearted cooperation to the state government for combating the emergency situation ,which has arisen, due to Corona epidemic and made them aware about the preparedness of the IMA to tackle any untoward situation with its available human as well as medical infrastructural resources for the service of mankind", said the visibly perturbed Dr. Mann while urging the people not to be misled by the false propaganda as such misconceptions in public mind would dampen the spirit and morale of the doctors and the para medical staff.