Dr. Soham D Bhaduri and Dr. Apurva Jain share their comments on the handling of the COVID-19 situation in the country, explaining why a strong health system is more important than ever during times of crisis.
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Recently, the World Health Organization’s Chief Scientist, Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, cautioned India of the possibility of its rural areas soon becoming the next COVID-19 hotspots. The migration of workers from metropolises to villages during the ongoing lockdown significantly adds to the fears, as nearly 3 out of every 10 such migrants could be possible COVID-19 carriers. Eventually, when it comes to something as COVID-19, there can be no rural vs. urban spread, or a rural vs. urban health system and workforce – a rural spread is just an extension signifying the bigger menace that looms on the horizon for the nation, its health system, and its anti-COVID army of health workers.
The question, much rhetorical in nature, is whether we are prepared for this monstrous menace. Our mighty population, poor health staff- and bed to population ratios, and wretched situation in terms of logistics and infrastructure make us largely disparate from developed nations like Italy, US, or Germany. With these countries having been badly hit despite having much better health systems, it is a no-brainer that there is cause for worry.
