Coronavirus outbreak has already affected people of more than 60 countries sending governments across the world in a flurry of panic and preparedness to ensure that they do their best to treat patients of coronavirus as well as contain the epidemic from spreading further. If not contained now this global emergency can easily become a disaster.

With an increase in the number of disasters and emergency events, super speciality institute Indian Spinal Injuries Centre hosted a day long International symposium and strategic meet on disaster medicine and disaster health on 5th March 2020.

The event was organized by Disaster Medicine Special Interest Group of International Federation for Emergency Medicine (IFEM) and Society for Emergency Medicine, India (SEMI) in collaboration of Indian Spinal Injuries Centre.

Minister of State for textiles, Member of Parliament, Ajay Tamta was the chief guest at the event. Other key dignitaries included Prof. James Duchrame (Canada), President, IFEM, and Prof. Sallyann McCarthy (Australia), President-Elect IFEM, Dr.A.K.Mukherjee, Director General, ISIC, and Dr.H.S.Chhabra, Medical Director & Chief of Spine Services, ISIC.

Ajay Tamta said, “The reason I am late is because of the increasing spread of coronavirus in the country about which we were discussing in the parliament as well. I am from Uttrakhand so I have seen firsthand the impact of a disaster and the lives it can ruin. My own sister was a victim of spinal injury and at first she went to treatment in Haldwani but when she was not getting better she came here to Indian Spinal Injuries Centre. Now she is living her life in a healthy manner thanks to proper and effective treatment. We need to train more and more doctors for emergency care as although many BSF soldiers and members of the air force came to help during the Kedarnath disaster in 2009 not many healthcare professionals were available to treat patients. Apart from training we also need to instill courageous mindset in healthcare professionals so that they are not afraid to approach a disaster and are always prepared to deal with one.”

Dr. H S Chhabra said, “Disaster medicine is an area of health-care management that is getting increasingly focused across the world. Hospitals across the world struggle to keep up with sudden influx of patients and knowing how to prepare ourselves for such situations will be a great help to the doctors and staff at the emergency department. Besides, it will also help us to build protocols to ensure all the patients are being attended to with quality service in minimum time. As 30 cases of coronavirus have come to light, it’s high time that we should stay alert against this threat.  We have stepped up our screening and quarantine measures for all the domestic and international patients in our hospital.  In order to have a prompt response, we have stockpiled the needed equipment to control the disease. For our medical staff, who will be the closest contact with patients, we have incorporated N95 respirator masks in the hospitals because these masks provide much better protection. We are once again monitoring all patients about their recent travel history.”

The symposium focused on the role of healthcare and preparedness of healthcare providers to attend the patients in the event of disaster or calamity.