In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors and health professionals have been taking various precautions in order to take the vitals of patients visiting them.
But one doctor attached to a Primary Health Centre in Kandamangalam in Villupuram district adopted an unusual method of screening a patient by keeping himself at a safe distance. A video clip of the incident that took place in Kandamangalam, went viral on Tuesday. In the one-minute video clip, the doctor Prakash, is seen formally using a torchlight to screen a boy who stands at a distance of over two metres.
The boy had visited the PHC with complaints of sore throat. The duo are separated by a ramp. Poonjolai, a multi-purpose health worker asks the boy if he is experiencing pain in his throat. The doctor then prescribes medicine on a small piece of paper and hands it over to Poonjolai who in turn, hands it over to the boy. The health worker then asks the boy to collect medicines from a counter on the premises.
A senior official in the Health Department said that the doctor’s act of formally using a torchlight to screen the patient from a considerable distance was wrong.
The Department has sought an explanation from the doctor and the health workers, and based on their reply, action would be initiated, he said.
