An embattled Maharashtra government has sought experienced doctors and nurses from Kerala to help counter the COVID-19 pandemic that is pushing the State’s health infrastructure to the limit, particularly in worst-affected Mumbai and Pune.
Dr. T.P. Lahane, the State’s Director of Medical Education and Research, has written to Kerala’s Health and Social Welfare Minister K.K. Shailaja urging the southern State to lend its medical and paramedical personnel temporarily.
“Currently, doctors and paramedical staff are working at their fullest capacity. The government has also made available the services of private medical practitioners in the city. However, we require in addition, more doctors for the management of COVID-19 patients in these two cities (Mumbai and Pune),” Dr. Lahane said in his missive, seeking for 50 specialist doctors and 100 nurses on a temporary basis.
The DMER is offering ₹80,000 per month for MBBS doctors, ₹2 lakh per month for MD or MS specialists and ₹30,000 per month for trained nursing staff. “The State government will also provide accommodation and meals for the doctors and nurses. It will be the responsibility of the State government to provide medicine and personal protective equipment to them,” Dr. Lahane’s letter stated.
The State has also made a similar request to the South Asia division of Doctors Without Borders, who have assured additional manpower.
Published - May 25, 2020 01:21 am IST
