It’s a rather strange time to be a doctor in India at least. Not a day goes by with the media reporting instances of doctors and nurses being physically assaulted or being verbally abused. Their so called ‘crime’? Since they happen to be in the forefront in the battle against Coronavirus, the general public felt they could be a bridge between patients and the general public and spread the virus.
Quite a shocker for these professionals, who are generally looked up to and are risking their lives for us. Thankfully in Goa, such instances have not occurred. However, fear is still present amongst the lay public as well as amongst the families of healthcare professionals.
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Our dotors are after all in the forefront in the battle against the virus.
Dr Shekhar Salkar, Head of Department – Oncology, Manipal Hospitals laughed when he was asked how the family was coping with the fact that he was possibly in the forefront in the battle against the virus. He said “My family is in the medical business. My wife is a health officer in a health centre in Bicholim. All we do is talk about the medical crisis and swap notes. She tells me about the challenges involved these days in tackling the virus. My children are based in Mumbai and both are trained, medical professionals. One is in a hospital in Chembur and my son is in Versova. They are managing very well; they are aware of the dangers and are staying at home. I am taking care too.”
Another senior medical professional Dr. Boussuet Afonso, Consultant Laparoscopic Surgeon and HOD Surgery department Healthway Hospital said his family was absolutely fine with him going out and meeting patients at his clinic. He said, “I know how to take care of myself so it is not a problem”.
However, for Dr Basil Cardozo who practices in Vasco, the situation has called for some serious measures to be initiated at home. He said “I have reduced my visits to my clinic drastically. I visit the clinic, once a week and that too depending if they are emergencies. I follow a routine once I return from the clinic. I go into isolation in a room away from my house. I then have a bath and then step into my house. My wife is a doctor and we have three children. I am very careful. At the clinic, I use personal protective gear. For calls from patients, I use the phone from home to address their general fears. We all have to be very careful in these worrying times”.
Another senior ENT specialist Dr Deepak Murthy said he had tried to get another house in order to avoid staying with his family. He said “This is a pandemic and my hospital has taken all the measures to ensure we are not exposed to the virus. There is a sense of fear in my family, of that there is no doubt. The minute I return home, I have a bath with Dettol. My clothes are kept separate and I am careful even in the house. I am in the forefront as a doctor and I have to also be careful so as to not fall sick”.
The motivated push given by a two-year-old child has encouraged Dr Shubra Borkar to go to her clinic every day. She said “My family was very scared when it all started but my two-year-old child was adamant that I go to the clinic because my patients needed me. My husband who is in the pharmaceutical industry is working every day. Everyone in my family is now very understanding and realize that I have to go and my job is very important especially in these times”.
Then there are doctors who are now forced to stay at home because their speciality doesn’t need round the clock presence, always. Dr Kedar Padte a gynaecologist said he would only go for deliveries otherwise; he was staying put at home with his family. He said “My family is reassured I am at home. There are other doctors who are spending long hours at work dealing with patients who are showing the symptoms of the virus”.
These brave men and women are literally putting their lives on the block when they go to the hospital or to their clinic. One can only hope, not one of them contracts the deadly virus in the days ahead. And above all escape the virus of misinformation and violence by patients.
