New Delhi, Apr 1 (UNI) Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Wednesday said the country was proud of medical practitioners for their resilience shown by them in dealing with COVID-19 outbreak, especially in the past three months.
"The government is standing rock solid behind you," he said and appreciated the various measures being undertaken by private medical practitioners and hospitals in close coordination with the government to combat COVID-19 in the country.
He again appealed to the nation that the doctors and health care workers should not be ostracised or targeted instead should be lauded for their efforts in helping the public at large. He said that doctors, nurses, healthcare workers deserve the people's respect, support and cooperation to keep the fight against COVID-19, an official release here said.
His comments came during a review of the availability of beds, isolation wards, laboratory readiness for high test volumes during Coronavirus and urged IMA and its regional members to form a task force and take a proactive role in helping the official machinery at state, district and local levels.
The Minister chaired the high-level review meeting here through video conferencing with senior members of Indian Medical Association (IMA) and state branches of Indian Medical Associations, reviewed the preparedness and concerns of medical staff across the country related to COVID-19.
Emphasising that their role in propagating the right information and education in the communities at the grassroots level was critical owing to them being medical professionals, he asked them to support the Government.
"You can support the Government efforts in spreading awareness regarding how to manage the period of lockdown effectively and responsibly in the larger interest of the country," he further said.
Appreciating the work of the various medical professionals, Dr Vardhan said it is the time to work together in unison with the Government to curb the menace of COVID-19.
Dr Vardhan also informed about the recently-published TeleMedicine guidelines under which a doctor can provide guidance over telephone and give digital prescription which can enable a patient to get delivery of concerned medicine at home itself and stay safe at home during lockdown.
The meeting was informed about the current scenario in the country, various guidelines, treatment and protocols.
Doctors from Delhi, Kerala, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Arunachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Mizoram, Karnataka, Manipur, Assam, Odisha, Gujarat, Chandigarh, Telangana and Uttarakhand participated in the video-conference.
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