MUMBAI: A 3-member central team that visited the state early March has attributed a lack of fear of the disease in people and pandemic fatigue as among key factors responsible for the February surge in Covid-19 cases. The team also observed that the virus is spreading to unaffected areas, although most cases are asymptomatic. It said that those who are opinion makers, like political leaders and doctors, may themselves not be following Covid-appropriate behaviour.
“While the exact causes of the surge are not known — since laxity in Covid behaviour is not specific to the state — possible factors are Covid-inappropriate behaviour due to lack of fear of disease, pandemic fatigue; missouts and super spreaders; and enhanced aggregation due to recent gram panchayat polls, marriage season and opening of schools, crowded public transport, etc,” said a report shared by the government.
In some places in Nagpur, senior doctors have not been attending to critical Covid patients, leaving management to juniors, affecting nuanced critical care like oxygen therapy, ventilator management, the team pointed out.
The observations were shared by the Centre after the expert team visited the state on March 1 and 2. The health machinery also may have become lax after cases came down after September, the report is believed to have stated.
Maharashtra is once again inching closer to a lakh(97,983) active cases. The team pointed out that the sense among people is that the current wave is less virulent. “People are not forthcoming for strictly following quarantine or getting testing done. Some among the doctor fraternity, especially private, may not be counselling patients for testing or followingprotocol, dismissing it as flu,” the team observed.
The team has said. “The chief minister (CM), chief secretary and principal secretary of health were sensitized. The CM suggested that a direct video conference of collectors with union health ministry could help.”
Senior health officials didn’t comment on the team’s observations.
(With PTI)