PANJIM: Goa is in the eye of a COVID storm. Beds are not available to such an extent that the patients are being treated on the floor even in private hospitals, medicines such as Remdesivir are becoming scarce, and the situation across the nation may soon be felt in Goa as well, said Rahul Mhambre, AAP’s Goa convenor.
In such a situation, he said, the government should be working unitedly as a team, as well as taking any assistance that can be provided by corporates, organisations, other political parties, NGOs and citizens. Instead, Goans are left floundering because of mixed signals coming from their elected leaders, and complete lack of information and awareness, added Mhambre.
In a press release, Rahul requested the BJP-led government of Goa to focus on nothing else other than handling the dangerous surge of cases and deaths in the State.
The Goa AAP convenor, listing some suggestions, said, “Instead of talking to each other, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Health Minister Vishwajit Rane should hold joint press conferences with clear decisions communicated in one voice.”
It is no secret that the recently announced restrictions are simply on paper. If the government is not in favour of a complete lockdown, then at a very minimum, all large congregations of people must be stopped — whether weddings, festivals, casinos, nightclubs, and large meetings of any kind including that of the government. These restrictions need to be enforced with police machinery if required, Raul suggested further.
The government keeps saying that people are dying because “they are coming to the hospital too late”. This is a strange assumption that people are not interested in saving their own life. COVID-positive patients in home isolation are being given tele-consultation by doctors. If these patients are coming too late to the hospital, has the government reviewed and updated the supervision protocols with these doctors based on the new information? “
Additionally, if the people are not respecting restrictions, or testing early enough, then the government needs to launch a comprehensive media campaign at village level for the next one week, to remind the citizen of COVID-safe behaviour, how to recognise symptoms, where to get tested, and how to take the next step of treatment, the AAP release said further.
Even after a patient is positive or needs hospitalisation, the release said, “There is no clarity on where the beds are available and what is the next step, the patient should take. There needs to be a war room or App dashboard that can maintain a real-time status of available COVID beds, oxygen beds and ICU beds. This needs to also reflect availability of medicines such as Remdesevir, and supplies such as oxygen.”
Aam Aadmi Party appealed to the State government to boost the confidence to the people of Goa that they can overcome the current crisis.
