New Delhi: The National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), in its recent report to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), has concluded that the third wave of COVID-19 could peak around October.
It further stated that children could be affected as severely as adults.
The report of the committee, set up on the directions of the home ministry, has noted that ” paediatric facilities — doctors, staff, equipment like ventilators, ambulances, etc. are nowhere close to what may be required in case a large number of children become infected.”
The experts have also written about prioritising a vaccination drive against the virus for children with co-morbidities and those with special needs.
While the country’s drug regulators have approved Zydus Cadila’s ZyCoV-D vaccine for children above 12 years of age, the drive is yet to begin. Earlier, Union health minister Mansukh Manhad had hinted that children may start receiving their doses against the virus from September.
Among their recommendations, the experts have said “a holistic home care model, immediate increase in paediatric medical capacities and prioritising mental health issues among children” were key at the moment. They have also proposed a model wherein Covid wards could be structured in a way that guardians of infected children could safely stay with them during the treatment.
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