The Hindu : Bird flu: Government to rope in private doctors

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 31, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Bird flu: Government to rope in private doctors

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, JAN. 30. The Delhi Government has decided to rope in private doctors in the Capital to help spread awareness about bird flu and the preventive measures to be taken thereof.

Delhi has 15,000 qualified doctors and 2,000 nursing homes catering to 70 per cent of the population which the State health department hopes to involve in any effort to combat the flu if any cases are detected in the Capital.

The State Health Minister, Yoganand Shastri, said he would be involving the Delhi Medical Association (DMA) to keep the doctors and through them the common man aware of the precautions to be taken in light of the bird flu that has hit the South Asia region.

"Since India is yet to report any case of the flu, we are not unduly worried. But we hope to plug all possible loopholes and ensure that people receive an update about the flu and remain safe. We are working out details to involve the private doctors and ensure that the medical machinery is on its toes,'' said Dr. Shastri.

This announcement comes even as the DMA officials complained about not being invited for the high-power meeting early this week called by the Health Minister of officials from various municipal bodies and organisations from the health care sector to chalk out the guidelines for combating the flu scare.

``The DMA wants to know why it was not invited to the meeting that the Minister took with the health officials and why we were not part of the team that formulated the guidelines for the city. The flu is the first of its kind that India is seeing and not many private doctors are aware about the flu and the precautions to be taken in case the flu was to strike the city.

We at the DMA can help disseminate information about the flu to doctors who in turn would pass it on to the common man. And the fact that the State government is only thinking about contacting us only throws light on the fact that the machinery is running too slow,'' said the DMA president Anil Bansal.

And while the Government is yet to put in place the announced plans for combating the virus, including the medical officers on the toll bridge, in the `chicken' mandi, setting up a lab in Ghazipur and other measures, the prices of chicken have fallen.

"We are worried about the price fall and reduction in the sale of chicken as the flu is really yet to hit the country,'' said businessman Satish Pal.

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