Having lived-experience of corona management as Medical Superintendent of District Hospital Udhampur, Dr Vijay Raina is of the opinion that the medical fraternity cannot win the war against Covid pandemic without public support.
Sharing his experiences about the challenges the medical fraternity faced and is still facing in the Covid times, he said over the past one and half year doctors and health workers around the world have learned that “they alone cannot win this war.
The data collected in the studies clearly point towards sharing of responsibilities, Dr Raina said. The biggest challenge is to control and suppress spread which cannot be done without mutual responsibility because it requires extending support to each other to stay safe. Health services and infrastructure are limited which can collapse due to overburden as has been witnessed worldwide, therefore the strongest weapon to fight any pandemic comes from the public awareness and support in the form of following safety protocols and taking vaccine.
He thinks that observing safety protocols becomes more important in post lockdown to prevent fresh surge in the cases
“During first peak of COVID-19, we managed more than 300 patients in District Hospital, Udhampur and in the second peak the number touched 600 patients and higher mortality, which clearly indicates higher risk of spread after every surge.
Thus this war can be won collectively and by supporting each other by following Covid appropriate behavior to break the chain of transmission, he said and added that the vaccine is the ultimate tool to fight this dreaded enemy. “We can win only if every individual comes forward to take vaccination. It is safe and will protect us from the infection” he maintained.