Tamil Nadu doctor makes tribal village his second home

COIMBATORE: The last year and a half has been challenging and gruelling for people across all professions, more so for doctors and health workers. Courtesy Covid, PPE kits and round-the-clock shifts have become the norm for medical staff. For N Arun Prasad too, a 27-year-old doctor posted in the Primary Health Centre (PHC) in the remote Thengumarahada village, life took a different turn as he had to give up visiting home.

Scenic village

Thengumarahada is situated on the banks of the Moyar river in the Kothagiri on the northern slopes of The Nilgiris, and coracles are the only transport people here have. Their pleas for a bridge to connect with the main land remain unanswered till date.

The PHC caters to people in four tribal settlements Kallampalayam, Hallimoyar, Chithirampatti and Puthukadu and is managed Arun Prasad. A native of Coimbatore, Arun used to travel to his home every two weeks until the second wave unleashed its wrath. Since April, he has been staying in Thengumarahada forgoing his weekly offs.

Groundwork

“Initially, it appeared like seasonal fever among the tribals. Later, many people exhibited similar symptoms. Following this, we collected samples from them and the result showed that many of the villagers had contracted Covid,” Arun said. Currently, there are 13 active cases in the village. However, the doctor said that getting on with the groundwork early has borne fruit as they could diagnose tribals exhibiting symptoms. Birudhayaraj, former village panchayat president said, “Doctor Arun conducts door-to-door fever screening and convinces the villagers to get the Covid jab by citing its benefits.”

Persistent effort

During the first wave, Arun had worked for nearly six months straight without a day’s break to keep the infection at bay. He said that he kept his family members updated about his wellbeing by contacting them over the phone and added, “Due to poor mobile network in the village, I could not video call my family.”

Moreover, Arun acknowledged the support of Collector J Innocent Divya, Deputy Director of Health Services P Balusamy, and health department members as the reason behind his continued efforts. After over two and half months, Doctor Arun took a day off from work on Saturday, said sources.

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