Junior doctors seek donations to buy protective gear

: Citing short supply of

personal protection equipment (PPE) from the Telangana government, junior doctors in the state on Wednesday started seeking donations to buy them in the open market.

JUDA (Junior Doctors Association) president Dr K U N Vishnu said though the state government is trying to supply the PPE which consists of eyewear, skullcap covering face, N-95 mask, below knee-level gown, footwear and gloves, they are not sufficient to meet the demands.

He said the junior doctors need at least 800-1000 PPEs per day for those doctors who attend duties at Emergency Wards, ICUs (intensive care units) and COVID-19 stations. However, they aregetting about 500 per day exposing the doctors to patients.

 

Out of 3,000 JUDAs in the states, about 1000 are working at Emergency Wards, ICUs and COVID-19 stations. I agree the government is putting in all its efforts to supply sufficient PPEs. We are getting about 500 per day. So we started seeking donations from the public, Dr Vishnu told PTI.

He said they have been getting good responses from people who started contributing to the cause.

According to him, the situation would become nightmarish if doctors start getting this and are confined to isolation.

Our target being -Every Healthcare worker must have adequate protection with a N-95 mask and sanitizer while on duty. We appeal to the public to donate whatever is possible to the organisation, with the assurance that total transparency will be maintained at all levels. We will regularly update the procurement and distribution details, he further said.

Dr Vishnu said a 'Level-II' PPE acceptable to be used by the medical fraternity would cost about Rs 1000.

On April 7, a media bulletin from the state government on COVID-19 said the total number of active cases in the state has jumped to 348. The number of people who succumbed to the virus remained 11 while that of those discharged from hospitals after recovery stood (cumulatively) at 45.