Webinar on “Where there is a will there's a way: Experience sharing of covid 19 battle" 

Chandigarh: Panjab University Alumni Association organised a webinar “Where There is a Will There's a Way: Experience Sharing of Covid 19 Battle" by Dr. G.D. Puri, Prof. and Head, Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care,  Chairman, Advanced Cardiac Centre,  Dean (Academic), PGIMER, Chandigarh. He is also the Chairman, Biomedical Instrumentation and Devices Hub – A Centre for innovation, design and clinical validation.

Dr. Puri has been working as faculty in dept of anaesthesia and intensive care at PGIMER since 1986. He is a well-known cardiothoracic anaesthesiologist in India and a Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS), New Delhi, India, as well as a Fellow of the Pulmonary Vascular Research Institute (PVRI), London. DrPuri designed the first practical closed loop anaesthesia delivery system (CLADS) in the world, which has been patented in his name, and has successfully undergone widespread testing in different medical institutions in India.

Prof.Deepti Gupta, Dean, Alumni Relations, introduced and welcomed Dr.Puri . Dr.Puri shared a presentation about his experience and strategies for preparing a dedicated Covid Hospital with existing and alternative resources, focusing on space, equipment, health care workers safety and patient care.

Dr Puri was given the responsibility of setting up the Covid 19 Care Centre at PGIMER and he spoke about how the available equipment was shifted from other parts of the hospital to set up the centre. He spoke about the training of the staff, planning and strategies involved to organise and isolate the care centre. He spoke about the importance of Team Work as people were afraid to go into such areas and the team leaders were always in the forefront. He spoke of the challenges faced by the PGI team like non availability of negative pressure rooms which they solved by using exhaust fans and opening windows to prevent recirculation of the virus from an infected person. Then there are challenges of operating in poor visibility due to the protective gear which the doctors still face. The strategies included training of the staff, monitoring all areas and procedures with CCTVs, gaining and sharing knowledge with doctors worldwide through webinars, motivating and recognising staff so that no one feels isolated or overwhelmed. Throughout the lockdown the work at PGI continued, even entrance and semester exams were not postponed.

The participants were full of praise and admiration for the PGI team and realised more than ever what doctors are facing all over the world. They asked a few questions which Dr.Puri answered to everyone’s satisfaction. Everyone thanked Dr.Puri. Sir concluded by saying that he is grateful to his team and he could not have done anything without them. Teamwork is the key to success.

The participants congratulated PUAA for organising the event. A vote of thanks was given to Dr.Puri by the PUAA team and the webinar ended.