Many elderly doctors chose the call of duty over their own safety and served Covid-19 patients in their own way.
They did so at a time when senior citizens were supposed to exercise extra precautions and advised to stay home. The government’s Covid safety protocol guidelines asked all those above the age of 65 years and below 10 years, as well as pregnant women, to stay indoors and venture out only in case of medical need.
Dr Arun Chaturvedi, 68, a physician with a successful practice and immense love of his profession, did not stay home when Covid-19 struck Agra, which was among the districts with a large number of cases in the first wave.
He continued to run his clinic and a dispensary to give medicines to the poor. Again, when the second and deadlier second wave of the pandemic emerged, he took no time in opting for Covid duties when asked to supervise health services at a 350- bed Covid hospital on the outskirts of Agra. This Covid hospital was made out of a trade centre of Agra Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Council (AFMEC) on the initiative of Pooran Dawar, the president of AFMEC.
“It took 15 days to make the hospital operational at the trade centre of AFMEC at Seengna on Agra-Mathura Road, about 20 kilometres from Agra city. Dr Shammi Kalra and I began the OPD,” said Dr Chaturvedi who lives in the heart of Agra.
{{/usCountry}}“It took 15 days to make the hospital operational at the trade centre of AFMEC at Seengna on Agra-Mathura Road, about 20 kilometres from Agra city. Dr Shammi Kalra and I began the OPD,” said Dr Chaturvedi who lives in the heart of Agra.
{{/usCountry}}“The need for a hospital was felt given the sharp surge in Covid cases. At AFMEC, we believed that we should lend a helping hand to the government in the pandemic. So, our facility was converted into a Covid hospital,” said Pooran Dawar.
“By the time the hospital became operational, the Covid cases began dropping and now the hospital will not be dismantled. It will stay prepared for the possible third wave of the pandemic and I will serve here again. Others and I, all served at the hospital without seeking any remuneration,” Dr Chaturvedi said. Now, he is back to his own small clinic and dispensary.
Going online to help patients
Dr OP Upadhyaya, senior chief medical officer at Sir Sunder Lal (SSL) Hospital of Banaras Hindu University (BHU), embraced technology to serve people.
He said, “I am already 65, so was not expected to attend serious Covid cases. But I started giving online consultations. I gave consultations to more than 300 patients/families for Covid treatment, home isolation and monitored their medication as per their condition.”
He referred about 10 patients to L-3 (Level-3) hospitals as their oxygen level had dipped below 60% and more than 95% of the cases he attended online recovered in home isolation.
Taught from the hospital bed
Kanpur-based veteran paediatrician Dr Raj Tilak, 70, was diagnosed with Covid-19 in April, but continued teaching GSVM (Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial) Medical College students and faculty members about the latest research on the pandemic.
Along with medicines, lying by his side were journals like Lancet. They kept him engrossed when he was not busy sharing the latest updates with junior doctors and faculty in the neuro Covid ward of Lala Lajpat Rai (LLR) Hospital, Kanpur where he was admitted after his oxygen saturation (SpO2) level dropped below 90.
During his stay in the ward as a Covid patient, he discussed Covid treatment and management or explained to the junior doctors about the double mutant virus, said one of the doctors who had attended on him.
Dr Tilak’s recent paper on allergies in children and their pulmonary issues had found a place in Lancet. Apart from being a top paediatrician, Dr Tilak is involved in research on asthma and allergies.
“Junior doctors listened to him intently as he continued to share the latest developments,” said Prof Yashwant Rao, one of the senior doctors who attended on Dr Tilak.
Dr Tilak said, “I can’t stop teaching, my heart is always in it.” Though Dr Tilak was surprised at contracting Covid-19 despite following all necessary safety protocols, all that’s behind him now. And he is back to his paediatric practice at his private clinic in a busy locality of Kanpur.