The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh is in solidarity with healthcare workers in India, who are caring for overwhelming numbers of patients with COVID-19, under the most extreme circumstances. Many of the College's Fellows and Members live and work in India, and we send them our support and our thoughts at this challenging time.
As part of our engagement work with Fellows and Members in India, we are contacting Overseas Regional Advisors (OSRAs) in the area, to establish what we can do to support them. We are working to provide contact points for OSRAs who are advising colleagues on an ad-hoc basis. It is of course paramount that those advising healthcare workers in India require to understand the part area of India where their advice will be taken, while communication and knowledge of the local languages is essential.
We urge the international community to step up, and to help India in its hour of need. This must range from life-saving equipment to medicines and COVID-19 vaccines. For more information about what essential support is being provided to India by the UK, please visit the UK Government website.
And we would urge colleagues who can to support the BAPIO (British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin) India COVID Fund. The fund is providing essential equipment and telemedicine, as well as other much needed help. EMMS International have also launched an urgent appeal for support to deliver, for example, oxygen supplies and PPE.
For a recent update on current vaccines and treatments for COVID-19, please visit healthline.com
