The Indian Medical Association urged the government on Wednesday not to share novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases daily, arguing the move would lead to panic even though the World Health Organisation declared it a pandemic.
“We appeal to the government to classify the data of the epidemic and take appropriate action with clinical precision. Sharing of data on a daily basis with the public, who are clueless as to what is expected out of them, has created panic,” said IMA in a statement.
“We are trying to calm the peoples’ frayed nerves. The daily sharing of data is creating panic. People are buying masks and hoarding hand sanitisers,” said Dr Rajan Sharma, IMA president.
Public health experts and those who work on the ground are at odds with the IMA’s plea. They said that sharing the right information helps dispel rumours and empowers people to protect themselves against infection.
“When the information of the first [Covid-19] case from Mayur Vihar was reported, we got calls from people, who suspected to have come in contact with the patient. The information helps contact tracing on ground,” said an official from Delhi government on condition of anonymity.
“In this day and age of information, non-disclosure of information is meaningless. Instead, sharing the correct information will make people aware,” said Dr Jugal Kishore, head of the department of community medicine at Safdarjung Hospital.
