A doctor in Madhya Pradesh's Indore on Thursday died of coronavirus infection in India's first casualty of a frontline warrior. Dr Shatrughan Panjwani, who had tested positive for coronavirus only a few days ago, breathed his last while undergoing treatment in Indore's Aurobindo Hospital. With this, Indore's coronavirus death toll has risen to 22. The city has reported 213 positive cases and emerged as a coronavirus hotspot.
Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr Pravin Jadiya said that Dr Panjwani was a family physician and lived in Indore's Rupram Nagar. He was first admitted to Gokuldas Hospital but his symptoms deteriorated further and he shifted to the ICU in Apollo Hospital. However, his health condition worsened even more and he was shifted to the Aurobindo Hospital.
PPE shortage putting lives of doctors at risk
Doctors and healthcare workers in Madhya Pradesh and other parts of the country are facing an acute shortage of personal protection equipment (PPE) required while treating coronavirus patients. The shortage of PPEs is causing infections in healthcare professionals involved in handling the coronavirus patients.
In India, more than 55 doctors have tested positive for coronavirus and most of them have been infected by their patients. Even in the country's one of the most premier hospital, AIIMS Delhi had been battling with the shortage of PPE kits till as recent as last month. In Delhi's Hindu Rao Hospital, several doctors and nurses have tendered their resignations due to the shortage of PPE gears.
Notably, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has also warned that the disruption in the supply of PPE caused by rising demand, panic buying, hoarding and misuse in wake of the COVID-19 outbreak is putting lives of the medical staff at the risk. The WHO urged industry and governments to increase the manufacturing of PPE by 40 per cent to meet the rising demand.
