Chennai: India is being appreciated for the way Covid -19 pandemic is being handled. Many feel safer here, than in other countries.
But, is this far from reality? A recent report from a leading media house said the actual numbers could be higher and India was underreporting the cases.
A few doctors in Tamilnadu point out that there are reasons to believe this. A source in private health sector says, “the actual number of coronavirus positive cases could be higher. We are waiting for rapid tests to begin. That could reveal more cases.”
So, what about the number of deaths? The source said, “On 14 April, a 69-year-old man had died in a private hospital while being treated for ccoronavirus. He had low immunity. His family, relatives and the nurses and doctors who treated him are now under isolation. Since it was a private hospital, not much was reported about it.”
Another source says three positive persons were found in Ayyapakkam. But these cases too were not discussed in the media.
Dr Ravindranath of Doctors Association for Social Equality said, “ICMR in Tamilnadu had tested 10,000 persons with accurate respiratory illness, out of which 1.8 per cent had coronavirus. Out of this, 40 per cent did not have any contact with Covid-19 patients or places. It is still hard to trace contact of 23 patients in the State. However, we are not talking about community transmission. Rapid testing is the need of the hour.”
A privately practicing physician, Prashant said, “We can only go by what the State government says. Now they have started doing tests on persons who were in contact with patients and who are asymptomatic. Anyone coming for admission even for chest pain is being tested. But, this is done in designated hospitals due to shortage of testing kits. We rely on the State government website and that of the Greater Chennai Corporation. The civic body is giving area-wise break down of the numbers too. As long as new cases start reducing, it means the two weeks incubation has worked. We are improving.”
However, a government doctor said that the numbers projected by Tamilnadu is accurate.”We cannot include those who died of respiratory complications or other causes as Covid-19 deaths. Regarding the number of positive cases, if we get more kits, we can implement rapid tests where we can get result in half an hour. This might lead to increase in numbers.” Currently, he said the State has tested on 20,000 odd persons.
Shortage of masks and other safety gear?
Amid allegations that there was a shortage of masks and other Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in Tamilnadu, Health Minister C Vijayabaskar has denied it.
Responding to DMK president M K Stalin’s charge, he said there was no shortage of face masks of PPEs in the State. There was no shortage of masks and PPEs, he added. “We have the capacity to treat 1.5 lakh patients and have enough stock of masks and protective equipment,” he said.