Covid-19 challenges
Covid-19 has thrown up many challenges for the human race and Kashmir being no exception to this fact. While most of the front line warriors and researchers have been pondering over the ways and means to deal with the crisis, medicos in Kashmir have been dealing with the fatalities as open and shut cases.
All deaths reported in various Covid-19 centres or hospitals here are attributed to the deadly virus and no scientific reason has been provided for the same. The situation has come to a point where a medico body has now raised concerns over the phenomenon.
The Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) has demanded Audit Committee for the deaths saying that people across J&K are confused about who died due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Noting that every death should be discussed by a committee to know what was the underlying cause of death (UCOD), immediate cause of death and factors leading to the immediate cause, and co-morbidities, the medico body has sought to clear the air.
This demand needs immediate redressal as a lot of confusion has crept in among the people that how bucketing of deceased is done and are classified into Covid-19 or non Covid deaths.
The Death Audit committee should go through the case sheets, investigations, and death summary of the deceased before classifying it as a Covid-19 death so that future references can be obtained from such an activity.
In a place like Jammu and Kashmir where 78 deaths have already been reported and more than 5600 positive cases have been reported, such exercise is a must. The region has one of the poorest health care services to offer to its people and in such a scenario various clarities are needed.
Ironically, medicos in Jammu and Kashmir have been caught off guard due to the Covid-19 pandemic. With no medical research and help being provided to them, they too are coping up with the shocks and surprises the deadly virus has sprung up.
With even medications and necessary equipments being not so freely available the various options of using some old drugs to fight the deadly disease too have not been explored.
Recently an existing medication has sprung a surprise in this battle of repurposed drugs during the pandemic. Dexamethasone is a fresh entrant to the race but appears to be more potent in the fight against the pathogen that has infected eight million people. And for a world struggling to come to grips with the disease, this drug holds out real hope till a vaccine is developed and distributed to the masses. It can buy time till an effective preventive treatment can protect populations across the world.
Dexamethasone has been in circulation for a while and is prescribed to treat extreme lung infections by doctors. It is a corticosteroid, perhaps the reason why it has an edge over other medications that were otherwise considered as the drugs of choice as on date. But as yet the medication has not been put to use as we are in a situation where we are clutching at straws in a deluge like circumstances.
KV Network
