A complete COVID-19 update

This is a post which will cover many aspects, actions, and decisions which have been taken for/regarding the pandemic in India.

I will be dividing this post in four couple sections:

1. What's with the vaccines' approvals/acceptance in the global communities?

2. India's O2 plans for the upcoming third wave.

3. New areas of focus for Quarantine Centres and more.

4. How India is increasing manpower for COVID Management.

--1--

So to start off... the vaccines. The majority of you reading this have been administered the vaccine or planning to take it. So you obviously would have been exposed to chatter regarding cocktail vaccines and the acceptance of Indian vaccines in the international communities. So this section addresses those aspects.

Some governments/people are now experimenting with "cocktail" vaccines. This is the idea of mixing vaccines. For example, I take the first dose of Covishield and the second dose of Sputnik V. Now, to summarise the discussions around this practice: W.H.O. has not yet recognised "cocktail" vaccines. Some studies are being conducted. However, this practice is not officially approved... yet.

Now about the Indian vaccines. Covishield first. Covishield is a vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India under the guidance of AstraZeneca. Covishield is another name for the AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine, which is produced in Europe. However, due to the different production sites, Covishield is not accepted by all European nations. Anyhow, AstraZeneca is in the final stages of filling up the required documentation to ensure that all European countries recognise Covishiled.

Covaxin, on the other hand, is still taking a lot of heat as W.H.O does not yet recognise it. The Indian Government believed that by July, the vaccine would be globally recognised. Nonetheless, due to low efficacy and questionable production methods/formulas, the vaccine's approval may not come anytime soon.

--2--

India is gearing up for the third wave. The Centre has sanctioned the installation of 1,222 Oxygen Generation Plants. The deadline to have these plants up and running is August 15th. The government has created a new panel to get daily updates on the installation/construction of these plants. The government is working around the clock to ensure that all the plants are operational by August 15th.

These plants, collectively, can produce 1,936 Metric Tonnes of medical oxygen, which is just satisfying 20% of the projected demand of 9,000 Metric Tonnes. However, if the industrial oxygen generating plants are also used or prepped for the incoming third-wave... India will be better prepared/equipped for the projected third wave.

Essentially, steps are being taken in the right direction. India is gearing up for the third wave. The Centre has sanctioned the installation of 1,222 Oxygen Generation Plants. The deadline to have these plants up and running is August 15th. The government has created a new panel to get daily updates on the installation/construction of these plants. The government is working around the clock to ensure that all the plants are operational by August 15th.

These plants, collectively, can produce 1,936 Metric Tonnes of medical oxygen, which is just satisfying 20% of the projected demand of 9,000 Metric Tonnes. However, if the industrial oxygen generating plants are also used or prepped for the incoming third-wave... India will be better prepared/equipped for the projected third wave.

Essentially, steps are being taken in the right direction.

--3--

The NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority) recently conducted a survey that brought out some disturbing facts regarding the Quarantine Centres and the aftermath of COVID-19. The survey brought out information that has now pushed the government's focus towards improving hygiene, food quality, and promptness in the Quarantine Centres. Moreover, the NDMA is looking towards starting a mental health programme to assist people going through post-pandemic trauma.

--4--

Lastly, manpower. During the second wave, a significant issue in India was the lack of trained personnel in districts and crowded hospitals. New drives/modules are being launched to ensure that the idea of shortages in manpower becomes rare news. The Indian government is now using their resources to situate four trained medical staff for every district to ensure that every village has more than enough personnel for battling against COVID-19.

The government is also launching online learning modules for interns and last-year medical students specifically designed for COVID-19 training. Through the modules, the interns and students will learn the specific skills needed in the hospitals to deal with COVID-19 patients. The module will grant certificates to the learners, and then the interns and students will have a couple of weeks of in-hospital training before being formally hired as COVID-19 support staff.

Moreover, new brief learning modules will be launched for Social Workers, NGOs, and Civil-Volunteers in order to prepare more manpower for low-level COVID-19 work.

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Again, the steps are being taken in the right direction. The country is preparing itself for a possible third-wave and it is firing on all cylinders. Let's hope for the best and wait for time to do it's job.