Pelezoto Pius Kikhi
Kirha Village, Dimapur
A lot of panic, confusion is being seen over the past few weeks among the whole citizen of Nagaland through social medias and newspapers about Corona virus. The group of citizen most affected as per my personal opinion being the Healthcare staff both from the virus and the community.
Prevention is better than cure: COVID-19 cannot be stopped at the moment and that’s the universal truth. But it can be controlled as we are doing it now through social distancing, lockdown, wearing mask, maintaining hygiene etc. and if we don’t control the infection, then it will only lead to a sudden influx of infected people into hospitals and we all know how better equipped our State is with regard to healthcare facilities. In case of an outbreak, with the current population of our State/ district how many infected people can be given treatment at hospitals and how many underprivileged should stay home battling the virus with their God given immune system. Not every young person will have super immune system. Some will require the help of medicines to boost their immune system also, otherwise, patient with mild case may turn serious requiring hospitalization and increasing mortality rate too.Therefore, we should not focus on mortality rate alone but also consider the infection rate and the healthcare facilities available with us. We should learn from the case of developed countries struggling with their healthcare facilities overwhelmed by the number of infections.
Restriction on hospital staff from going to workplace by the community:The step taken is for the greater good but the concept should be practical. If hospital shuts down, we all know its consequences. Therefore, everyone as stakeholders should work together for a solution. The community should understand that restricting healthcare workers completely will not ensure infection free zone for themselves, and the Hospitals being a high risk area for infection should also understand the pulse of the community.Till date, since we have only one known positive case in Nagaland, it is the right time for both side to take a lead and help each other by sharing its knowledge, capacities, facilities, fear and work upon a solution through open communication and not direct orders.I believe this will then create a better positive understanding and more fruitful outcome could be achieved to survive this pandemic smoothly.
There are numerous other issues resulting from this COVID-19 pandemic, but there is always a solution for any problem. And that solution cannot be dictated from one side because this time, it is affecting all sides.Controlling this pandemic requires not only concern field experts, specialized skills and facilities but also administrative and most importantly the community support. Therefore, understanding each other issues and developing solutions together,will lead to a better understanding and produce more fruitful outcomes, as this pandemic in worst case scenario may not disappear soon.
