At fever clinics, medical staff work non-stop

in fear and exhaustion

There is growing anxiety and exhaustion among medical staff in the city’s newly minted ‘fever clinics’, 31 of which were unveiled on Saturday in the hotspot areas.

Medical staff manning the clinics, meant to be a bridge between the public and the frontline workers fighting the COVID-19 disease, say they have been working non-stop since the disease’s outbreak a month ago.

“Many of us on COVID-19 duty since March 2 are working without a break,” said a senior doctor at a fever clinic. “Now, we have been asked to continue indefinitely, which is untenable.”

A doctor at the Adugodi Urban Primary Health Centre (UPHC), which operates on a public-private partnership, explained that she and her staff had been asked to maintain the schedule for another month at least.

Medical staff across several clinics were visibly stressed and jittery at working in sustained and close contact with possible COVID-19 cases. Several spoke of being besieged by people.

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“They come here even if they don’t have symptoms,” said a nurse. “They don’t listen to basic instructions. The social distancing squares painted on the ground? They might as well not even exist.”

However, at some places such as the Halasuru Referral Hospital, staff appeared resigned. “We have no choice, but to do our duty,” said Dr Sindhu Nagaraj of the facility.

This was contrasted at a clinic in the east zone, where a doctor lambasted a woman who arrived at the facility with a foot problem. When asked why she was walking around in the midst of a curfew, the woman said: “I work as a housekeeper for a bank. They are not giving me a day off.”

The doctor said the stress of manning the clinics is exacerbated by the fact that relief medical crews are not at hand.

Praveen Bagewadi, the nodal officer in charge of fever clinics in the east zone, admitted medical staff had been working without a break.

“A rotational system must be introduced, but there is a staff crunch,” he said.

At several clinics, the standard strength of staff was six, who had two PPE (personal protective equipment) between them, besides another two for ambulance staff. “Right now, the PPE we have is sufficient,” the doctor said. “But what if the patients increase?”