Anticipating third wave Indian Academy of Pediatrics training 6,000 pediatricians to handle adult patients

By Joymala Bagchi
New Delhi [India], May 28 (ANI): As the Covid-19 pandemic has affected adults and children during its second wave in an unprecedented manner, much more than the first wave, the intensive care chapter of the pediatrics">Indian Academy of Pediatrics is training 6,000 pediatricians since the last six months to handle adult patients and preparing them for a likely third wave.
Along with this, pediatricians hailing from B and C grade towns along with small villages are also being trained.
"Along with training the pediatricians for adults, we are enrolling to train nursing staff also to tackle the situation, if a third wave at all comes. We do not know the severity it can lead to for which our plan is that the Pediatricians should be able to manage adults and adult physicians should able to manage pediatrics," said Dr Dhiren Gupta, Chairman, Indian Academy of Pediatric Intensive Care.
The pediatric expert also believes that country's whole healthcare system should be revamped sans compartmentalisation, that is, as a pediatrician one should be able to manage adults and adult physicians should be able to manage pediatrics because all have passed through MBBS and know about the basic training.
"During the first wave, experts observed that children, despite testing positive, were mostly asymptomatic and did not show any sign of illness and rarely required hospitalisation. However, this year, children as young as six months to one year fell sick and were in need for hospitalisation," the expert said.
"Most of them had a high fever, poor intake of food, cough and cold and lethargy which was not seen during the first wave," he said.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Friday informed that as many as 1,86,364 fresh COVID-19 cases have been reported in India in the last 24 hours, which is the lowest daily new cases reported in the last 44 days.
The daily positivity rate has also gone down to 9 per cent, the Union Health Ministry said.
According to the Union Health Ministry, the active caseload in the country has reduced to 23,43,152, with a net decline of 76,755 cases in the last 24 hours.
Recoveries continue to outnumber the daily new cases for the 15th consecutive day, as India witnessed 2,59,459 fresh recoveries in the last 24 hours, the MoHFW said. (ANI)