PPEs in short supply, medics get infected

Many doctors, nurses and other medical staff who are at the forefront of the country's fight against the Covid-19 pandemic have reportedly contracted the virus. Health workers say lack of "proper" protective gear has exposed them to the perils of their profession and made them susceptible to the viral attack.

A semi-retired 85-year-old urologist and his 53-year-old cardiac surgeon son were among the first to test positive in Mumbai. The

octogenarian

died . Across the city, five more doctors have now tested positive for coronavirus. Nurses, however, seem to be affected more, with 11 reporting positive so far.


The nurses associations have been complaining that unavailability of

personal protective equipment

(PPE) was responsible for it. An official at a private hospital said not every staffer can be given a PPE since it was not recommended by WHO. "No hospital has that kind of stocks. PPEs are in short supply and overpriced," he said.

In Rajasthan's Bhilwara, 18 doctors and nurses tested positive. A doctor and two nurses in Haryana have been found Covid-positive. On March 31, a nursing officer at PGI, Chandigarh, who was on duty in the same emergency ward in which a Covid-19 patient was being treated and died later, tested positive. "Compared to previous weeks, the supply of PPEs have been better. However, it is still a matter of concern," said R Ravindra, president of the

Private Hospitals

and

Nursing Homes Association

.

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