Kozhikode has successfully battled and largely triumphed over a third Nipah virus outbreak, thanks primarily to a team predominantly comprising women led by Health Minister Veena George, Director of Health Services K.J. Reena and District Collector A. Geetha.
Similar was the case during the first Nipah outbreak in 2018 when the team led by then Health Minister K.K. Shailaja, Director of Health Services R.L. Saritha and District Medical Officer (DMO) V. Jayasree battled a scenario for which they were least prepared for.
Health Minister Veena George came down to Kozhikode and took the reins into her hands even before it was confirmed that the cause for the two deaths was Nipah. She implemented the Nipah protocol soon after doctors raised suspicion over the second death. A control room was set up at the government guest house on war footing, and the machinery ran smoothly to prevent further spread of the disease. They put a check on false propaganda about the outbreak by providing information only through the official channel.
This year, the team comprised Sub Collector V. Chelsasini, Deputy Collector E. Anitha Kumari, and Additional District Medical Officer V.R. Lathika, while former DMO Asha Devi, Deputy Collector Shamin Sebastian, and District Information Officer K. Deepa were part of the surveillance team.
Minister for Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas and DMO K. Rajaram were the only men at the senior level of the team this year, while then District Collector U.V. Jose led the team from the front in 2018.
Though there has been criticism about the efficacy of the team, its success in preventing more deaths after the disease was confirmed has won it praise. No fresh positive cases were reported last week, and the district is expected to go back to normalcy in a couple of days.
