LEHS|WISH has been working at the frontlines of the Coronavirus pandemic since it was first announced in India. India, a country of more than 1.3 billion people was caught off-guard, and the government and health officials found themselves unprepared to handle the massive problem arising from the pandemic. LEHS|WISH immediately swung into action for controlling this infectious disease. Given the diversity of the country, with socio-economic inequality, it has been extremely crucial to address the issues arising at each level to put up a decent fight against the disease. While the central and state governments were toiling hard to put their best efforts, it was critical that we participate in the fight against COVID-19.
More than sixty-five percent of India’s population lives in rural areas and hence a robust strategy to prevent and reduce community transmission becomes the need of the hour. LEHS|WISH, with its presence in five states, stepped up by supporting the containment strategy as per the guidelines of the Government of India and consciously leveraged digital technology in its roll-out plan, wherever relevant.
LEHS|WISH went that extra mile to fight this disease and lessen its impact. With the efforts of our scientists and medical fraternity, Corona vaccine was made available for immunization of the people. And as always, LEHS|WISH had been committed to the cause of ensuring that people receive the due vaccination and are safe from this deadly disease.
Since early 2020, LEHS|WISH had been supporting the governments of Assam, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh in their fight against COVID-19 through advisory, technical services, equipment, and capacity building. Following is a snapshot of LEHS|WISH interventions and activities in 2020:
Reached 8.43 million citizens through OPD consults (including telemedicine) and community level surveys in five states. Among these, 1.04 million people with Influenza Like Illness (ILI) symptoms were treated as per Government of India guidelines.
Provided support in conducting government mandated tele-consultations via eSanjeevani. It proved invaluable in handling home isolated COVID-19 cases virtually. Over 1.09 million consultations were conducted as of 23 April 2021 in five states.
Launched an innovative initiative – tele-calling for pregnant women in the last month of their pregnancy.
It helped in restoring Maternal and Chile Health (MCH) services during the pandemic.
Supporting state governments in their Vaccination-Drive to vaccinate maximum number of people in minimum number of days.
1357291 (1.35 million) people reached out through IEC and BCC activities.
Initiated a solar mediated Dedicated COVID-19 Health Centre (DCHC) in Rajasthan in collaboration with the state government.
Trained HCPs in Assam across Health and Wellness Centers (HCWs) and Tea Estate Smart Hospitals, and helped in creating Isolation Wards in these hospitals. Introduced PoCDs like Dozee and Enject, AINA and TrueNat. Forty COVID Sakha and Sakhi volunteers trained to sensitize 30,000 people on COVID Appropriate Behavior (CAB) in thirteen Tea Estates.
Trained over 25,000 Healthcare Providers (HCPs) on Government of India and state specific COVID 19 guidelines and protocols via LEHS|WISH online training platform – Wish2Learn with virtual reality component. Training also included topics, such as pediatric care, geriatric care, general care, home based care, referral, orientation and hands-on training on the use of life saving devices.
Distributed more than 0.9 million Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits along with other logistics to HCPs across five states.
In India, the second wave of the pandemic, fueled by novel coronavirus mutants, caused more havoc than its previous variant. Since April 2021, for several week in a row, India witnessed three to four lakh fresh cases each day, and between 3000-4000 deaths. The situation worsened further with rise in the number of Black Fungus, White Fungus and Yellow Fungus cases. All these together adversely affected the Indian healthcare system, both public and private, and caused acute shortage of medical supplies of Oxygen, hospital beds, medicines, and healthcare providers.
To mitigate the devastation caused by the second wave since April 2021, LEHS|WISH optimally utilized available government resources in COVID-Care Centers (CCC) and Dedicated COVID Health Centers (DCHC) wherever available, and supplementing them with amenities such as oxygen, Isolation Wards, proper nutrition and regular vital checks that were usually missing in most of the health facilities.
