Healthcare providers bear the brunt of sealed Delhi-Gurgaon border

Healthcare providers working in Delhi and Gurgaon are having a harrowing time as they are unable to commute to work due to the sealing of the Delhi-Gurgaon border in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak.

At a time when they are fighting the coronavirus battle, inconvenience to them means inconvenience to several patients.

Ritu Garg, Zonal Director, Fortis Memorial Research Institute says there is an urgent need to ensure medical assistance to patients on chemotherapy, dialysis and having other medical emergencies.

"The biggest challenge we are currently facing is that a number of our health workers are settled outside Gurgaon. While we are trying to make some arrangements, it is very difficult for them to leave their families and move to Gurgaon in the present circumstances, she says.

It would be a great help if a system is put into place for healthcare workers to be screened and allowed to move across the border after full validation by authorities," Garg adds.

Deepak Sharma, a resident of west Delhi, who works with a diagnostic lab in Gurgaon is another such worker who is bearing the brunt of the sealed border.

It is a crucial time for laboratories, and we are working with full strength, but I cannot commute to my workplace now, so it is kind of leave from work. Also, there is no concept of work from home in this sector. I did not want to take leave during such time, but now I am forced to do it, he says.

Arjun Dang, CEO, Dangs Lab says the sealed Delhi-Gurgaon border is leading to shortage of manpower, delay in medical processes that need to be done on time and also causing inconvenience to patients driving to Delhi from Gurgaon and vice versa.

He said one of their senior-most doctors who specialises in hematology has not been able to come to Delhi from Gurgaon for the last three days.

"The hematology samples are mostly oncology samples and we are unable to process them. Also, a lot of my patients come to Delhi for the drive-through coronavirus testing. It gets difficult if they are stopped at multiple places while they are commuting," Dang adds.

Echoing Garg, Dang says a uniform system be put in place for healthcare workers who are travelling between Delhi and Gurgaon.

He says his organisation caters to many hospitals in the NCR and is unable to function due to the sealed border.

Ritika Sharma, who works as a nurse in a Delhi hospital and stays in Gurgaon, says she has been given time till Monday to arrange for some accommodation in Delhi till the time borders are sealed.

Siddhartha Bhattacharya, Secretary-General, Nathealth-Healthcare Federation of India, says the government should remove curbs on movement of doctors, medical personnel and other associate service providers, and allow them to commute to and fro the Delhi-Gurgaon border.

Nathealth-Healthcare Federation of India is an apex industry association of healthcare providers.