Calls to Apthamithra helpline go up in Mangaluru

With the surge in Covid-19 cases, there has been a rise in the number of calls received at Apthamitra helpline located at Infosys campus in Mudipu, on the outskirts of Mangaluru.

In the past 15 to 20 days, Apthamitra helpline has been receiving nearly 300 calls per day, Aptamitra’s nodal officer Dinesh Kumar told DH.

“Initially, on average, we received 200 calls per day. The helpline functions in two shifts (8 am to 2 pm and 2 pm to 8 pm), with each shift receiving 100 calls in the past. The rise in the number of cases has led to an increase to 150 calls in each shift.

“Further, all the queries in the past 15 days were related to Covid-19 and its symptoms. When the helpline was launched, we were receiving calls from those who had returned from outside the state and were seeking guidelines on quarantine. Some callers were also anxious about Covid-19 and had also sought details on treatment,” he said.

“The callers with symptoms of fever, cough and cold are advised to visit fever clinics set up in different government hospitals and private medical colleges in the district. In some instances, volunteers themselves had submitted records of patients and sought the appointment of doctors for consultation. About 5% of calls are received by floor doctors in the helpline,” said Dinesh Kumar.

Around 50 PG medical students and Ayush doctors receive calls, write down primary symptoms of callers, hand it over to doctors and advice if the condition of patients is severe.

Apthamitra is reaching out to people in order to identify those having Influenza-like Illness (ILI), Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI), Covid-19-like symptoms or having a high risk of getting infected.

Helpline 14410 is dedicated to Covid-19-related queries including telemedicine, counselling and facilitating testing, treatment for those in need.

This helpline is also complemented by general helpline 104 for other health issues and helpline 108 for health emergencies as well.

The Apthamitra helplines are located at Bengaluru, Mysuru and Mangaluru.