BENGALURU: “We in Karnataka and in India are not at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic just yet, we could hit it at the end of April or in early May,’’ said Dr Devi Prasad Shetty, founder-chairman, Narayana Health. “We are about a month behind the United States on this.’’
On the 21-day lockdown down, he said, “The lockdown should bring down the mortality rate by at least 50%, provided we follow it up with all the measures like testing, local lockdown and rigid adherence to social distancing. Now, the ball is in the people’s court, not the government.’’
Asked if we should start testing more people as the tests in our country are fewer compared with other countries, Dr Shetty said, “Testing may not help treating the patient, but it will definitely help in segregation, quarantining and also localising the lockdown if required. I’m sure it’s a matter of time before we will be able to scale up our testing facilities.’’
About the general assumption that Indians enjoyed higher immunity, he said, “Whatever is the theory behind Indians being more immune, but for practical purposes we should assume that the virus will behave exactly how it behaved in China, the US, Italy and Europe. And for all practical purposes let us assume that Indians are like anybody else across the world. But if it is true that Indians are more immune we will be the happiest people. Always prepare for the worst and if good things happen, it is very good.’’
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Asked about some health experts advocating intake of Vitamin C, Dr Shetty said, “People can eat anything — Vitamin C, garlic and whatever they want to improve immunity and whatever makes them happy. But there is no scientific evidence to prove anything because COVID-19 is something new, and so nobody can give an exact opinion on how it responds. Yes, a good sleep, nutritious diet and good mental health balance definitely will help build immunity to fight against COVID 19.’’
“Disturbed mental status due to confinement can definitely alter the immunity but I hope it is not very common. I do hope and pray to God that the virus is less virulent in India compared to how it was in the other parts of the world,” he said.
“As for the economic impact of the lockdown and the hardships people are facing, I would like to make it very clear that the economics will matter only when we are all alive, so it is important to get our priorities right.”