NEW DELHI: AMID the rising cases of Covid-19 in the national capital, several doctors from across major government hospitals have also fallen sick because of the virus and are in isolation.
According to health officials at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), around 50 doctors are in isolation after testing Covid-19 positive.
In the neurosurgery department of the institution, around 8-10 doctors have been infected due to which the remaining doctors are working more than 36 hours, said an official.
Meanwhile, right across the road of AIIMS, at Safdarjung Hospital, at least 22 doctors have tested positive and are in isolation.
Doctors from departments including gynaecology, anesthesia, medicine and microbiology have been infected by the variant.
Eleven doctors from the pediatrics department have tested positive. Along with this, a few of the consultant doctors have also come in the grip of the virus.
According to a resident doctor at the hospital, this is just the tip of the iceberg, as 30-40 are symptomatic and are keeping themselves in isolation.
He said that despite this, the hospital has not issued any standard operating procedure for the doctors. At Lok Nayak Hospital, a dedicated Covid care hospital, at least four doctors have tested positive for the virus.
“There have been cases where doctors, who were not infected in the first and second wave of the pandemic, are getting infected now. They’ve lost their immunity and we’re concerned about that,” said a senior doctor.
At Ram Manohar Lohia, at least 20 doctors have tested positive and at Lady Harding Medical College (LHMC), at least 15 have tested positive so far.
These doctors have not shown any severe symptoms and are taking care of themselves by taking the required medicines in quarantine. The national capital recorded 4,099 fresh Covid-19 cases on Monday with the positivity rate at 6.46 per cent.
Possibility of more curbs
Amid rising coronavirus cases in the national capital, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) is expected to consider more restrictions — to arrest the spread of the infection — in its meeting scheduled on Tuesday, official sources said.