There are several cases reported in India about Ambulance drivers refusing to carry COVID-19 patients or charging a high amount from the families of the infected. Two autorickshaw drivers from Kerala, in their 40's, are using their autorickshaws as ambulance to transport Covid patients to hospital. In th epast two months they have carried atleast 200 patients. They said, we are not running any ambulance service. We are just ferrying asymptomatic patients to testing centres or first-line treatment centres because there is a severe shortage of ambulances in Nileshwar. In this two month period they have tested themselves twice and found negative. With the rising number of Covid patients and suspects, the Nileshwar Taluk Hospital decided to assign Harish and Ratheesh the task of ferrying patients in August when the 108 Ambulance services were unable to keep pace.
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“There was a day when a positive patient had to be brought to the taluk hospital and no one was willing to pick them up. I gave a call to Harish and he immediately agreed,” said Dr Sureshan District Covid surveillance nodal officer. Harish signed up Ratheesh for this activity, now the duo is involved in ferry services. They were provided with Masks, gloves, sanitiser, shampoo, and spray guns were provided by the hospital management. They don’t wear a PPE kit, but that is not required said Ratheesh. The autorickshaw was provided with a transparent plastic sheet separating the passenger cabin and the driver’s seat. They never come in contact with the sheets. After every trip, they disinfect the passenger cabin with the spray gun and wipe the seat with cotton gauze given by the hospital.“I store the used gauze in a plastic ziplock cover and burn them when I go home,” said Ratheesh. Every day, they make at least six to seven one-side trips ferrying Covid patients or suspects to testing centres.
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Ratheesh sold his auto in April due to economic hit and is driving his friend auto. Harish was gifted with a auito by his school mates last year and is using that. A 48 year old e-rickshaw women driver, MunMun from Siliguri, West Bengal is brave enough and carried the COVID-19 patients to the hospital in her rickshaw. She is also carrying hundreds of COVID-19 patients in her rickshaw.
