New Delhi: Resident doctors across various hospitals in the Capital have written to the Delhi government asking for better preventive measures against COVID-19. The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) wrote to Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Sunday requesting separate accommodation for resident doctors posted on Covid duty, deployment of adequate workforce, and a halt on hoarding of medicines and other equipment needed for Covid care.
FORDA president Dr Partha Bora said, "Last year, the government had provided separate accommodation for all doctors on Covid duty. However, this year there has been no such arrangement and we are expected to go back to our homes or hostels once our shift is over. Residents have been putting in extra hours and get exposed to the virus daily. Going back home will put aged parents, small children and other family members at risk. Most residents in the city stay in hostels, where the risk of spreading the virus is very high due to shared living spaces and communal kitchens/ mess halls (dining space).
"Currently, some hospitals in West Delhi have given residents the option to stay in hotels or lodges but they have to fund their stay out of their own pockets which is unfair. We are not asking for 5-star lodging. Any place with basic facilities, sanitation and healthy meals will do".
In their letter, FORDA wrote, "after duties, the majority of doctors return to their respective homes or hostels. Which is a matter of concern as the doctors may become a source of infection and the nearby family members and cohabitants in the hostel may contract the infection. Previous year, adequate arrangements were made and had been quite useful and praiseworthy". They have requested the Delhi government to "arrange adequate separate accommodation and quarantine period" after finishing a posting in any Covid ward.
Following an upsurge in cases, FORDA has also requested that an adequate workforce be recruited and a special pool for Covid posting be formed since resident doctors have been serving in Covid wards for the last one year or so.
The letter also states that infrastructure needs to be strengthened. Residents have asked the government to "address the aspect of scarcity of medication, ICU beds and hoarding of essential medication".
Residents across Delhi government hospitals confirmed that they were running out of, or already out of, stocks of essential medicines like Remedesivir and Favipiravir that are commonly used to treat COVID-19, apart from having acute shortage of ICU beds, ventilators and oxygen cylinders.