174 doctors, 116 nurses, 199 health workers have died due to COVID-19: Govt
New Delhi, Feb 5: A total of 174 doctors, 116 nurses and 199 healthcare workers have died due to COVID-19 in the country, the government informed Lok Sabha on Friday citing data from states received under an insurance scheme.
In written reply to a question, Union Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey said that duly implementing a series of containment measures including lockdown and promotion of COVID-19-appropriate behaviours, India has been able to successfully manage and blunt the aggressive progression of the virus.
Elaborating on the measures taken to contain the pandemic, the minister said dedicated health infrastructure focused on COVID-19 was identified and earmarked to manage surge in cases.
"Based on the intimations received from the states under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package: Insurance Scheme for Health Workers fighting COVID-19, 174 doctors, 116 nurses and 199 healthcare workers have died due to this pandemic as on February 2," the minister said.
As on February 3, there are 15,17,506 isolation beds and 79,385 ICU beds with 40,311 ventilators available in the country, he said.
Currently, 1,214 government and 1,152 private laboratories are undertaking COVID-19 testing.
"As of now the case per million and death per million in the country are 7,719 and 111, respectively which is much lower compared to the status in many developed countries also," he said.
Necessary monitoring is being undertaken for COVID-19 on a regular basis, Choubey said.
Responding to a question on the number of doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers engaged in various government hospitals for COVID-19 duty, Choubey said that as health is a state subject, there is no centralised data being maintained by the Ministry of Health on it.
An additional incentive of Rs 1,000 per month is being paid to Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) in view of their significant contribution towards the pandemic-related work.
The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP): Insurance Scheme for Health Workers Fighting COVID-19 was launched with effect from March 30 in 2020 to provide comprehensive personal accident cover of Rs 50 lakh to around 22.12 lakh healthcare providers, including community health workers and private health workers drafted by the government for COVID-19-related responsibilities.
The Ministry of Health provided guideline on infection prevention and control practices to the state governments to minimize the risk of infection to healthcare workers.
The Ministry of Health in consultation with the Department of Personnel and Training has also directed state governments to consider quarantine period of healthcare workers as "on duty".
The Union Ministry of Health has also issued direction to the chief secretaries of states and union territories on provision for accommodation facilities for quarantine of healthcare workers. Guidelines on rational use of PPE for hospital and community settings were issued.
These guidelines followed a risk-based approach and recommended type of PPE that needs to be used in high and low risk areas. The healthcare workers were provided with hydroxychloroquine for prophylaxis and prevention of infection. An advisory to that effect was also issued by the ministry on March 23, 2020.
States are being supported in terms of supply of logistics, Choubey said.
So far 1.69 crore PPE Kits, 4.08 crore N-95 masks, 11.16 crore tablets of Hydroxychloroquine have been supplied to states, UTs and central government hospitals.
In the context of COVID-19, the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 was promulgated on April 22 last year. Further this ordinance was brought before Parliament, passed and notified on September 29.
The amendment provides for safety and security of healthcare service personnel from acts of violence.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
