COVID-19 Pandemic—Frontline Experiences and Lessons Learned From a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital at a Suburban Location of Southeastern India

Abstract

The key challenges to any health care setup during emergency situations, such as that of the COVID-19 pandemic would be to rapidly address hospital preparedness and response tailored to the local population, societal influences, political factors within the existing infrastructure, and workforce. Second, to adopt and moderate policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines issued by national and international agencies, such as WHO, CDC, and the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) were tailor-made to the local conditions of the hospital and community. In this publication, we have discussed the challenges and experiences in preparation and responses to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic at a tertiary teaching hospital situated at a suburban locale in a small union territory. Puducherry is located in the South Eastern Coromandel Coast of India. The core processes, such as hospital preparedness, adoption, and amendments to SOPs based on dynamic changes in guidelines released by the central and local government, training given to health care workers, setting up the in-house diagnostic facility, surge capacity, management of supplies during the lockdown, infection prevention, and control and patient care are discussed. We have also reinforced our experiences in translating COVID-related opportunities for research and innovation in the form of awards and research proposals for the faculty and students of our institute. The lessons learned in terms of strength and limitations on the ground level of public health during this process is worth sharing as it would provide guidance in preparing the health care setups for pre- and post-pandemic.

Participatory Approach to Develop Evidence-Based Clinical Ethics Guidelines for the Care of COVID-19 Patients: A Mixed Method Study From Nepal

“…To mitigate the shortage, this study suggests the identification and deployment of a highly trained but clinically less active healthcare workforce at the time of health emergencies. Moreover, it would important to advocate for medical education reform as ethics education or training is missing in the medical curriculum of Nepal ( 36 , 37 ).…”

Lessons Learned from the Lessons Learned in Public Health during the First Years of COVID-19 Pandemic

“…A total of 17 lessons, derived from 47 studies [8][9][10]12,15,16,[20][21][22][25][26][27][29][30][31]36,37,43,44,[47][48][49]55,57,58,60,70,[72][73][74][75]77,80,81,87,[101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][112] and quoted on 167 single occasions, were referred to this pillar: among them, 30 citations referred to AFRO region, 16 to EMRO region, 25 to EURO region, 52 to AMRO region, 29 to SEARO, and 15 to WPRO region (see Figure S3).…”

“…A total of 7 lessons, derived from 29 studies [9][10][11][12][13]20,27,28,31,45,55,64,67,70,72,73,75,78,84,85,87,111,112,122,134,[136][137][138][139] and quoted on 50 single occasions, were referred to this pillar: among them, 8 citations were referred to AFRO region, 4 to EMRO region, 10 to EURO region, 15 to AMRO region, 11 to SEARO, and 2 to WPRO region (see Figure S7).…”

Analisis Kematian Coronavirus Diseases 2019 (COVID-19) dengan Standardisasi Usia Berdasarkan Wilayah di Indonesia periode Maret 2020 – Mei 2021

“…7 Sebuah studi kasus komunitas di India menyebutkan bahwa epidemi/ pandemi membutuhkan fasilitas kesehatan, termasuk rumah sakit yang merupakan salah satu institusi paling kompleks dalam komunitas untuk mengubah prioritasnya dan menyesuaikan rutinitas kerjanya untuk meningkatkan respons sistemik yang terkoordinasi terhadap situasi yang berkembang. 29 Sebuah studi yang dilakukan di Indonesia pada masa pandemi COVID-19 menyebutkan bahwa sistem kesehatan Indonesia telah melakukan penyesuaian responsif dengan meningkatkan fleksibilitas dan kemampuan adaptasi baik terhadap struktur fisik, pemberian layanan, ketersediaan sumber daya manusia untuk mendukung kesiapan rumah sakit. 30 Rekomendasi dari studi di China menyebutkan bahwa ada tiga hal yang perlu diperhatikan dalam mengatasi krisis perawatan di rumah sakit yaitu mengembangkan model matematis dengan memprediksi jumlah pasien untuk memperkirakan kebutuhan sumber daya manusia dan peralatan yang dibutuhkan, mengidentifikasi biomarker di awal untuk memprediksi tingkat keparahan, dan memperbaiki manajemen pada unit perawatan intensif dengan memprioritaskan pasien berisiko tinggi, penerapan protokol standar serta bekerja secara multidisiplin.…”