The Delhi Government has initiated a certificate course for health assistants in which 5,000 individuals will be trained in Covid-related care and thereafter assist doctors and nurses in hospitals and also support communities in medical emergencies.
Keeping in mind the emergence of a possible third Covid-19 wave, the initiative was launched in collaboration with the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University.
The course was launched on Monday by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Health Minister Satyendar Jain, in the presence of Atishi, MLA Kalkaji and professors of Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University.
The two-week-long course launched by the Delhi Government will include 500 trainees in the first batch who will be equipped with life support skills, heart functioning, Covid care, blood testing, sampling, first aid, home care etc.
Sisodia said, “We want to create a model youth force in Delhi which will be equipped with all the basic skills and knowledge needed to fight any medical crisis. Not only will our youth be prepared to fight any crisis, they will also be able to provide medical assistance to their family and people in their community.
“Within a matter of four days, thousands of people applied to be a part of this training programme. This indicates that people are keen to be a part of this course and learn. While in the first batch we have inducted 5,000 trainees, we plan on scaling this and making it a long-term, ongoing initiative,” he said.
Health Minister Jain stated that the course is extremely important to tackle any medical crisis of the future. “This course will be able to provide individuals with employment opportunities considering there is an increasing need for health assistants in hospitals who will be able to assist nurses and doctors,” he said.The trainees will receive a certificate and medical kit upon completion of the course. The medical kit will include a blood pressure monitoring device, thermometer and an oximeter. “The two-week long course is divided into two stages – the first week will include didactic and demonstrative training while in the second week, trainees will receive practical experience,” the Government said in a statement.
“Nine hospitals have been roped in for this course, where trainees will be given basic training. The hospitals are Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital, Chacha Nehru Child Clinic, Sanjay Gandhi Hospital, Ambedkar Medical College, ESIC Hospital Basaidharapur, Hindu Rao Hospital and Vardhaman Mahavir Hospital. The Delhi Government has disbursed an amount of Rs 5 crore for this initiative,” it said.