A COVID-19 challenge in rural heartland of Odisha

Annada Shankar Das, an Ayush doctor working in Nuapada district, has attended close to 1,000 patients in the last two months, several at odd hours.

Annada Shankar Das keeps telling himself not to attend phone calls at odd hours. But when his phone rings, he does answer. Working in western Odisha district of Nuapada, which is badly affected in the second wave of , Dr. Das, an Ayush doctor, has attended close to 1,000 patients in last two months, several of those at odd hours. The moment he gets calls from patients, he writes down their co-morbidities, soothes the nerves of anxious relatives, helps critical patients in hospital admission and distributes drug kits. “If you avoid or miss a phone call, you will actually jeopardise one’s life,” he said.