Source: Google
By OmPriya Sahoo
The frontline healthcare workers and doctors have paralysed their lives while treating the infected. Ever since the growth of coronavirus, the doctors and healthcare workers have passed through different phases of hardships.
Starting from working for long hours to occupational stress, physical violence and mainly getting exposed to the viral pathogen– they have borne it all.
We have also come across several news stories where healthcare workers have been admonished from entering their own property. At some regions, people pelted stones at them when they went for around check-up.
Similarly, there have been so many isolated incidents of cruelty. Apart from that, at some places, people have been denied the burial rights of some doctors who lost their lives treating this virus.
With a view to protecting the health workers in the country, the Government of India recently passed an Ordinance making violence and physical attacks against medical staff a non-bailable offence, punishable by up to seven years in prison.
The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 dictates that the culprits will have to pay a penalty of up to Rs 7 lakhs, depending on the severity of the act, and also states a time limit of 30 days for the completion of the investigation.
There has also been an acute shortage of PPE equipment for the treatment of Coronavirus. In order to meet the shortages, the defence public sector undertakings and other private sectors have been roped in for manufacturing PPE kits in large scale. Some of the health workers have been immensely careful to protect their family by not coming in contact with them.
Despite all the act of brutality, the healthcare workers and doctors have been striving day and night to cure the infected and save lives. It should be the responsibility of every person, government body, and institution to extend support and keep them safe.
