First woman in-charge excels in heat of Covid-19 battle
LUCKNOW: The daytime temperature is 40 degrees Celsius and the PPE kit makes it feel a lot more than that. But, the heat has not dampened Dr Shiuli Rathore’s spirits. Rather, her commitment to the battle against Covid-19 remains more than 100%.
As the first woman incharge of the isolation ward at King George’s Medical University, she works round the clock in a hands-on manner. Quite often, she can be seen walking inside a metal and glass box to take samples of suspected patients.
“It’s tough standing in PPE kits with the high day time temperature, but duty comes first,” says Dr Rathore, assistant professor in the department of forensic medicine and forensic toxicology.
As head of the 10th team formed since the isolation ward came up, she has no chance of going back home. (She has a flat in the building earmarked for the KGMU faculty). The previous nine teams had male doctors as team leaders.
Her six-year-old son Nabhaditya, a student of class 2, has to do without her until her quarantine period gets over after her 14-day active duty.
“I left my son with my parents in Bhopal. I did this even before the lockdown. I had a hunch that I will have to discharge this kind of duty, where one will be able to meet one’s family only after a gap of weeks,” says the doctor who joined KGMU in 2015.
She has been heading the team for the last 10 days with two women senior residents, and several other staff members, including junior residents, ward boys and nurses. Although she heads the team, Dr Rathore does not rest on her laurels.
“The team is small and I have to ensure they do not feel the staff crunch and remain motivated. It is great to work as I could learn a lot with cooperative team members,” she says.
“I got a compliment from a sister (nurse) in ward, who told me the team is working so well because a woman is the in-charge for the first time and women are good managers,” she adds. So whether taking samples, arranging medicines or any other items, all have Dr Shiuli’s participation.
“Last night, we did not sleep as a coronavirus positive woman delivered a child and she had to be shifted to the isolation ward. I had to personally manage this, keeping her safety in view,” she says.
As for her family, she connects with them through video call and messages that keep her motivated.
“Often, during a call, my son asks me why am I in hospital and not home. But then he also tells me over the video call: ‘Treat the patients well, okay’,” she says.
AS HEAD OF THE 10TH TEAM FORMED SINCE THE ISOLATION WARD CAME UP, DR SHIULI RATHORE HAS NOT GONE HOME