Indore: Private doctors are being roped in the fight against COVID-19 in a systematic manner. At a meeting of private doctors with the health department and district administration held at Nehru Stadium on Thursday night, it was decided that all private clinic, except those in the containment areas, would be reopened soon.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has prepared a protocol under which private doctors have been asked to register each patient they examine in an App, and if they suspect that a patient has coronavirus, they should mention it in the App, which will alert the area SDM and the Rapid Response Team (RRT).
The doctors were told to register information about themselves and their staff in the app so that they could be included under the Prime Minister COVID Insurance Scheme. However, if an employee of a clinic resides in the containment area, he will not be allowed to work in the clinic. He informed that about 20 fever clinics are being opened in the city. Similarly, 25 fever clinics will be opened in rural areas.
After the meeting collector Manish Singh said formal orders for reopening of private clinics would be issued on Friday. Singh said that all allopathic, ayurvedic, homeopathy, unani etc. clinics are to be opened. He asked the doctors to make proper arrangements for sanitasation in their clinics. Sanitise the clinic daily. Get patients from clinics to follow social distancing. Prioritise patients by taking phone appointments at clinics as much as possible. Do not let more than four patients at the clinic at one time. Doctors were asked to take the temperature of all patients coming to the clinic with a thermal gun and also check their oxygen level with oximeter.
Singh said the private clinics will cull patients who are suffering from cold, cough and\or fever and not coronavirus and this will reduce burden on dedicated COVID-19 hospitals.
MP Shankar Lalwani and IMA president Dr. Satish Joshi, Dr Nishant Khare and nodal officer of medical services Chandramouli Shukla were also present in the meeting.
MP Lalwani said that the situation in the city is constantly improving. Much work still needs to be done. Physicians have an important role to play in overcoming coronavirus completely.
