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FICCI, on behalf of NITI Aayog, has launched a training course on COVID-19, with a focus on infection control and clinical management of positive cases. This also covers more than 15 important aspects on preparedness against the outbreak.
The course provides information on the outbreak, transmission, symptoms, hospitals' preparedness, screening and triaging of patients, standard precautions, correct and rational use of PPEs and bio-medical waste management for COVID-19.
The content has been referred from credible sources such as guidelines from Union health ministry, WHO, CDC- USA and best practices from Indian hospitals.
Co-created by experts from diverse fields of healthcare, the course has been launched by FICCI on an accessible for all platform developed with the help of Medvarsity. Healthcare workers can access the content free of cost. (https://healthedu.co.in/courses/training-of-hcws-on-covid-19/)
Further, FICCI is also working on courses for specific cadres of healthcare workforce and translating the courses to common Indian languages.
Regular training of the healthcare workforce must be undertaken for the better health of patients and medical staff as a key factor in any outbreak response.
Protecting healthcare workers at the forefront of fighting COVID-19 must be seen as a national priority. Some of the key tenets to prepare our healthcare workforce to combat the outbreak include, adequate supply of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) and other requisite medical supplies, training on Infection Control and Prevention and management of the disease, financial and social protection as well as psychological support.
Finance minister's announcement of a health insurance for Rs 50 lakh per healthcare worker for 3 months due to coronavirus is a very prudent step towards financial protection for about 22 lakh health workers handling the COVID-19 crisis across India.
Last week, the PM's call to the nation to applaud and express gratitude to the healthcare workers combating the pandemic, received an overwhelming response.
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