Steps taken to fight the COVID-19 pandemic at the grassroots level of rural India: Experience of a community physician

Abstract

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was first identified in Wuhan, China and then rapidly spread all over the world. The World Health Organization declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020 as a result of COVID-19. As it has caused substantial morbidity and mortality, most countries took several measures to control its spread, including India. As of now, India has witnessed three major waves of COVID-19. Several measures like nationwide lockdown, active case finding, contact tracing, home isolation, and vaccination were taken. There was involvement of multiple sectors (including private and government) and community participation. During the pandemic, I was posted at a primary health centre in a rural setting in India. A rural primary care setting has its own limitations. All the steps taken had several challenges at the grassroots level. Therefore, through this article, I highlighted the challenges faced during the implementation of steps taken to battle the pandemic and the outcome.

Keywords: Lockdown; SARS-CoV-2; Challenges; Strategy; Village

Core Tip: Numerous steps were taken in response to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic including nationwide lockdown, active case finding, contact tracing, screening, home isolation, transfer of patients to dedicated care centres, vaccination, and activities to generate disease awareness. Several challenges in the implementation of these steps at the grassroots level were overcome with the involvement of multiple governmental and private sectors. The grassroots workers were the backbone in the management of the pandemic in rural areas. Despite taking various steps to combat COVID-19, we may not have been able to prevent or control the waves of COVID-19.