The third wave of Covid-19 was not as severe as was anticipated. But we cannot afford to be complacent, says Dr K. Sudhakar, health minister of Karnataka. “I urge people to go get their booster doses as vaccination is the only weapon we have against Covid-19,” he says.
In an interview with THE WEEK, Sudhakar outlines precautionary measures being taken to prevent monkeypox. He also speaks about new initiatives like Namma Clinics and how they help strengthen the state’s healthcare system.
Excerpts:
Is a fourth wave of Covid-19 around the corner? How prepared is the state to deal with the situation?
If we look at how Covid-19 has been across the world, we know it comes in waves. It is slightly difficult to predict when exactly a wave will begin to break out or peak. However the point is that irrespective of whether there is an upcoming wave, we need to be adequately prepared. The first thing is the infrastructure. During the past waves, our government has significantly augmented medical infrastructure, be it ICU beds, oxygen plants or manpower, that will help us deal with a potential wave and we will augment this further if and when necessary. Also, I would like to state that the severity of the infection has been brought down because of the massive and successful vaccination efforts taken up in the entire country by Government of India led by our Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
When the third wave struck, despite a higher number of cases, we saw a fraction of the number of hospitalisations compared to the first and second waves. This is a huge effect that the vaccine had.
However, let me warn you that this doesn't mean that Covid-19 is over and the risk is still existent. Experts have found that some of the immunity provided by the vaccine wanes after a period of time and hence the booster dose is necessary.
Currently the booster dose is being given free of cost to all age groups. And our government has been encouraging people to get their booster dose. However, it is with deep disappointment that I say that despite all such efforts by the government, people are not taking the precaution dose. I feel that people have become complacent since third wave was not too severe and have assumed that Covid-19 is not a threat anymore. Government is doing all that we can to keep reminding people about the importance of not letting our guard down against Covid-19 and encourage people to get their booster shot. So, I once again urge people to go get their booster doses as vaccination is the only weapon we have against Covid-19.
There are very few takers for Covid booster shots in Karnataka. What measures are being taken to address this?
As I said earlier, it seems that people have assumed things like ‘Covid-19 is gone’ or have become overconfident and negligent that nothing will happen to them as they have survived three waves. There are about 3.22 crore citizens in the age group 18-60 and only 10.3 per cent of them have received precaution dose as of Wednesday. Even among 60+ the coverage is not satisfactory as only 33.16 lakh i.e., 46.5 per cent of the 71.34 lakh eligible citizens have got their booster shot. Overall our estimate is that there are about 4.13 crore citizens who need to get precaution dose but as of Wednesday only 77.3 lakh i.e., around 18.7 per cent of them have got precaution dose.
Earlier the low precaution dose coverage among 18+ was blamed on the fact that it was not available for free. Thanks to PM Modi, precaution dose is now made available free of cost to all at government vaccination centres and we have also added Corbevax to our vaccine basket.
To speed up booster shot coverage, we have opened up many more vaccination centers and we are also conducting a door to door vaccination drive for senior citizens. We are also conducting workplace vaccination at factories, IT companies and government offices. Efforts are also on to create awareness among citizens about the importance of booster shot. I reiterate that the battle against pandemic can only be won with the help of everyone and every citizen should voluntarily get the booster dose.
What kind of precautionary measures are being taken against monkey pox?
As of now, Karnataka has not seen any case of monkeypox. We had one Ethiopian national who was suspected to have monkeypox, but after the test results came in, it was concluded that it was just chickenpox. However, we are being very vigilant and we are taking all necessary measures including strict surveillance at all districts that border Kerala. Epidemic Hospital, Bengaluru and Wenlock Hospital, Mangaluru have been identified as designated hospitals for isolation of suspected cases. Also, we have designated officials at all ports and airports. There will be three officials at each port and airport who will work round the clock in eight hour shifts to ensure that the surveillance is strict.
I also would like to give one clarification however. Monkeypox is not like Covid-19 both in terms of contagiousness and fatality. Covid is spread through air and it is very easy to spread and contract infection. Monkeypox is only spread through physical skin contact with an infected person or a contaminated surface. Also, mortality is also extremely low compared to when the Covid-19 first wave hit. So, I appeal to people not to panic about monkey pox and assure that govt is taking all necessary precautions to prevent and mitigate monkey pox.
Tell us about ‘Namma Clinics' and how they help in strengthening the state’s healthcare system
The Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres or Namma clinics are a new initiative to enhance accessibility to healthcare among urban poor. Our government is working towards establishing Namma clinics to cover a population of 15,000 to 20,000 specifically targeted to areas having a large number of economically vulnerable sections. As per current plans, Bengaluru (BBMP area) will get a total of 243 Namma clinics and the rest of Karnataka will get 195 Namma clinics. Each Namma clinic will be staffed with one medical officer, one staff nurse, one lower division clerk and one group D staff.
Patients can get free consultations, free medicines and free lab tests at each Namma clinic. A total of 14 lab tests will be made available at Namma clinics. In case the patient needs further treatments at secondary and tertiary care facilities, they will be also be provided free referral. Facilities for tele-consultations with specialists will also be created to expedite the diagnosis and treatment.
The major benefit of Namma clinics is that it will make primary healthcare accessible and affordable to urban poor. It will also help to screen diseases, especially non-communicable and lifestyle diseases at an early stage thereby making treatment much quicker and mitigating life-threatening complications that occur at advanced stages of the diseases.
