COVID-19 Pandemic: Kerala nurses urge SC to provide them with required safety equipment

The nurse association of Kerala, United Nurses Association has approached the apex court saying that the nurses and health workers are ill-equipped and so, exposed to the spread of coronavirus infection and have asked for the Supreme Court’s help. The association has 3.8 lakh working nurses.

The government has formulated a National Management Protocol for COVID-19 to address the serious concerns relating to extreme risks posed to the health and safety of health workers across the country.

According to The Hindu, United Nurses Association represented by advocates Subhash Chandran and Biju P. Raman have filed the petition which says that health care workers are at the front line of the COVID-19 outbreak response and as such are exposed to hazards that put them at risk of infection. Hazards include pathogen exposure, long working hours, psychological distress, fatigue, occupational burnout, stigma, and physical and psychological violence etc.

The proplems highlighted in the petition by the association pointed out lack of availability or sub-standard personal protective equipment (PPE) in several hospitals, non-availability of COVID-19 testing kits, lack of training on infection prevention and control, less facilities in isolation wards, health workers who are pregnant, lactating or immune compromised are being forced to work.

Health staff is forced to do over time with no conveyance facility and deduction of salaries on taking leaves, the petition said.

The association also urged the Supreme Court to direct the government to extend the range personal accident cover provided under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package for Health Workers Fighting COVID-19 to include all health care workers across sectors.