Repercussions of lockdown on primary health care in India during COVID 19.

Primary health care is a comprehensive care with a wide range of essential services for people living in the rural and hard-to-reach areas. However, the primary healthcare delivery system in India is still in its initial stages and lacks human resources. With the COVID-19 pandemic around the corner, there has been a diversion of resources for controlling corona pandemic leading to undermining availability and accessibility of health services. This article highlights a few case scenarios and the multidimensional impact of lockdown on primary healthcare services. The article suggests certain appropriate measures that can be implemented as the lockdown simply cannot stop the transmission with no definite treatment and vaccine. There should be a multipronged strategy for breaking the chain of transmission and for future preparedness in case of such situations and to strengthen our primary healthcare system.

Combating COVID-19 pandemic in India: Demystifying the concept of herd immunity.

The concept of Herd immunity is a key factor for epidemic control. According to it only a proportion of entire population needs to be immune either via natural infection or vaccination. The idea of herd immunity via natural infection rather than vaccination is a bit controversial, as it is not clear how long will the antibodies last, and whether re-infection or re-activation of the virus can occur after the antibodies starts weaning from the body. It has been suggested that coronavirus will likely become similar to a seasonal flu once the herd immunity is attained. Till then, it will continue causing outbreaks year-round and there could be multiple waves of virus transmission before achieving herd immunity. Therefore, the public needs to learn to live with it, and continue practising the best prevention measures, including wearing of masks, physical distancing, hand hygiene, and avoidance of gathering.