Essay on Role of Virtual Care to Prevent the Spread of Corona Virus

 Ever since Coronavirus breakout in China, the whole world is facing a global health issue, which has spread at a rapid speed. That’s why the World Health Organization has to declare this situation a global public health emergency. The criticality of the situation can be measured by looking at the global death toll, which has passed the number of 40,000 deaths till 1st April. The death toll for Australia has reached 21 and a continuous rise has been observed in this, which is a worrying sign in so many ways. The virus originated from Wuhan’s market, which is a province of China. Initially, the severity of the situation was not known, but the virus spread so rapidly in a few days’ time, which rang alarm bells not only for China but for the whole global community.

Understanding the Epidemic of Coronavirus

            It is believed that the main spread of the disease happens through person to person spread, whereas respiratory droplets can also be a reason if any infected patient sneezes or coughs. The major issue in this regard is that an infected person may not show any symptoms at all, or symptoms may show very late, and until then many others in his close contacts can also get infected without knowing it. A Coronavirus affected patient can also infect any surface, and if any other person gets in contact with the surface, he/she will also get infected. That’s why COVID-19 has been taken as a major threat all across the globe, which continues to haunt the world.

How Virtual Care can help

            In this epidemic of Coronavirus, people have to remain extremely careful in terms of socialising and mobilising. Social distancing has been seen as one of the important methods to stay safe from the virus, also decreasing its spread. So, people who are patient of other diseases or if someone having any other health issues need medical attention, but it is dangerous to go outside and visit any medical facility. The danger is that if there would be any unknown Coronavirus patient around, he can infect other people at the hospital, roads, or medical shops, etc. The role of virtual care can be critical in this regard to provide digital and telehealth facilities to people without coming out of their homes. So, it is vital to use Virtual Care as a primary method to deal with common patients, as well as, the patients of Coronavirus. The new cases are quickly emerging every day, and it has been told that a vaccine will take at least one year to be available for the people to deal with COVID-19. So, Virtual Care is not only the best way but also the safest way to deal with this current situation, where life is threatened by the Coronavirus. The caregivers will remain safe from getting infected, and other people will also remain safe from Coronavirus. The stakeholders need to understand that Virtual care has a great role to play, which should be considered by the policymakers in the best possible manner.