People with spinal cord injury want the Union Health Ministry to declare them “high-risk” category patients for COVID-19 infections.
In a letter to the Ministries of Social Justice and Empowerment, and Health and Family Welfare, The Spinal Foundation, a self-help group for persons with spinal cord injuries, has pointed out that they are a vulnerable segment who need immediate hospital admission, and need to be put on oxygen support as the window period for healing is short.
‘Self-quarantine’
Komal Kamra, co-founder and director (development) of the Foundation said that within two weeks of the first case of coronavirus infection in the country, the group had networked with its members, numbering around 25,000, to self-quarantine, as that was their only chance of survival. “We did this long before the Prime Minister declared it,” she added.
The Foundation members say there could be more people who are not part of the network.
“We have been working in the last two months on prevention, reaching out to all in our network. We do have a deficient lung capacity and don’t have the window period that patients with other conditions might have,” Dr. Kamra, who is also a microbiologist, said.
The members were not looking for freebies from the government but just that they be admitted to the hospital and provided the required support immediately, she said.
S. Vaidyanathan, co-founder, said persons with spine injuries do not have control over their bladder and bowel movement. They are also vulnerable to UTI (urinary tract infections) and bed sores.
‘Compromised systems’
“In the end of February, we issued an audio warning in various languages, requesting all quadraplegics to be careful. In people like us, the respiratory and cardiovascular systems are already compromised and the infection would require only half the time it requires to affect a normal person,” he explained.
He recalled the experience of a paraplegic who had contracted an H1N1 infection that was diagnosed only after he developed pneumonia. “We know how difficult it can be. We want persons with spinal cord injury to be notified as high-risk as by the time the COVID-19 test report comes, the [patient’s] condition may deteriorate and there may not be a chance [of survival],” he pointed out.
“We need to have 50 beds in a designated hospital in every State capital. Such a special measure would help. Just as the U.K. government has notified it, we want the Indian government to also notify and provide treatment,” Mr. Vaidyanathan added.
