Warning people against the deadly coronavirus, which has so far claimed over 181,000 lives in India, a doctor from Mumbai has made an appeal on Instagram, requesting people to not take this virus lightly. In the video that has gone viral on social media, the doctor has pointed out that the number of cases in the city are far more than the beds in hospitals, and they are forced to treat critical patients at home.

In a five-and-a-half-minute video, put up by actor Shamita Shetty, Dr Trupti Gilada – an infectious disease specialist – said that even if people have not tested positive for the coronavirus for over a year, that does not imply that they are immune.

The doctor, who broke down while talking about the state of affairs in the city, said “If you think you are a superhero or that have great immunity because you haven’t contracted the virus in a year, you are wrong!”

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She implored people to wear their masks and shield themselves as “the virus is all around you”. The doctor sights an example of a 35-year-old on the ventilator who the doctor cannot help anymore. 

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She said “if you are stepping out of the house you mandatorily should be wearing a mask.” 

Indian hospitals are facing an acute shortage of medical resources. Hence she asked people not to panic if they are showing symptoms of coronavirus. Only if critical should they consider getting admitted to hospitals. 

She explained the severity of the situation by saying that the hospitals are arranging for oxygen to home quarantined patients as there are no available beds. She said, “Multiple stable patients are getting admitted consequence of which the hospital cannot take up a critical patient who require medical surveillance”. 

In a plea to the listeners she said, “Please leave the hospital beds for those who actually need it. Who have pneumonia and who require constant medical surveillance”. 

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She also debunked myths around the vaccine, saying those who have received two shots of the vaccine are not showing critical symptoms now.

“For whatever reason, you are not getting vaccinated please do. We are seeing its clear positive impact in the COVID patients”.

She said that the chances of serious infections and hospitalisation in vaccinated patients are negligible. 

In the end, she asks the viewers to pray for the ones testing positive and the medical workers. She strongly discourages people from leaving their homes.

She wraps up the video on a positive note saying we will come out of the second wave if we just take precautions and take care of ourselves. 

India recorded over 1,761 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, the biggest one-day spike the country has seen and over 2.60 lakh new cases.