In times of distress, one must count the blessings as much as the curses. With the second wave of Covid 19 causing great despair, at almost 4 lakh cases and 4000 deaths each day, one only hopes it doesn’t get any worse. One wishes this was the peak everyone was looking for and that one would see only a fall in days to come. However, in the days that preceded this mayhem, there were enough indications of what would befall the States and the Nation. Some woke up to the reality early, while some were in deep slumber. Some aided albeit tacitly, by organising great congregations while some silently worked to mitigate the effects of an impending disaster,
In these days of great stress, people latch on to anything available and provides solace to a bruised soul. We have seen great shortages be it in availability of medicines or lifesaving oxygen, ventilators or even beds all over the Country. Healthcare system was literally in tatters. All was still not lost, for some State Governments did fairly well in spite of highest caseloads. Some like Maharashtra were quickly working to develop communication management plans to respond to the coronavirus. Mumbai, the financial capital of the country was reeling at the beginning of April this year with a massive surge. Come May, and the surge seems to have ebbed. That a City with massive slum clusters came out of what could have been a calamity of gigantic proportions must be a case study for the Institutes of management to study. What strategies were adopted? What was the “Mumbai Model or BMC Model”?
Let’s look at some endearing processes that the “Mumbai or BMC Model” adopted. Soon after establishing a COVID-19 task force and command room, the coronavirus needs and risks were assessed. It had representatives of key functions, including supply chain, human resources, communications, operations, sales, legal, health, safety and environment and more. The decision-making structure was laid out in clear terms with who would be the go-to man and the decision maker.
BMC hospitals are the bulwark of the Covid management system. The protocols for cleanliness, cleaning and disinfection of touch surfaces, restrooms, door knobs, kitchen and dining areas, if the healthcare workers had appropriate personal protective equipment, avoiding cleaning methods that might aerosolize pathogens like pressure washing, steam cleaning, everything was specified to the last detail. Even the emergencies were planned for.
When things go wrong, they terribly go wrong and the leaders are castigated. However, when things succeed, the leaders should be patted on the back too, for they too are Covid heroes like the innumerable doctors, nurses, para medical staff, healthcare workers on the ground. The “Mumbai or BMC model” too has a hero in its Commissioner Mr. Iqbal Singh Chahal. That he was at the helm even during the first wave which was controlled fairly well, only adds to his credibility. Most importantly, he took steps to eliminate panic, de-centralize war rooms, cut response time and build adequate infrastructure. He ensured that COVID test results were not directly shared by testing laboratories with patients, which created panic. He abolished the central control room and ensured each of the COVID testing laboratories to share results only with BMC and not directly with patients. No wonder the engineer with a defence background says that ‘decentralized fight is the key’.
Further, he set up 24 war rooms, one in each civic ward. The war rooms would send test results of patients in their wards by 6 am every day. Each war-room was a control centre with 30 telephone lines and 10 telephone operators, 10 doctors with medical support staff and 10 ambulances who worked round the clock. Interestingly, their work was further divided by creating 10 dashboards within each ward with information on availability of beds, making a total of 240 de-centralized dashboards for the city of Mumbai. It was a data-driven method in which data material and action-plans were managed and coordinated through a network of 24 ‘war rooms’, or ‘control centres’ as they were called, one for each of the city’s administrative districts. The dashboard, available in the public domain was constantly updated by each ‘war room’ and each hospital, be it government run or private. It displayed the availability of beds and many other data. About 40% of Mumbai’s present capacity is in hospitals with ‘jumbo centres’ another idea that worked well for Mumbai.
Mr. Chahal, Mr Tope the health minister and the Chief Minister Mr Thackeray are all men on a mission and already on the move to prepare plans to contain the third wave if and when it happens. These leaders are great simplifiers, who cut through argument, debate and doubt, to offer solutions everybody can understand. That accolades were flowing in from the Nation’s PM and even the Courts on the management model that Mumbai followed must be a pride for the entire population in Mumbai in particular and Maharashtra in general. Surely there are lessons for the rest of the Country as well.
Mumbai doing well was also due to kits Jumbo Vaccination Centres set up by BMC across the City. Availability of Vaccines is a concern. The Commissioners’ idea of issuing global tenders to buy vaccines from wherever they are available must be lauded and supported by all. In the ultimate analysis, the battle can be won only when everyone is vaccinated. Still the Covid protocols must all be followed. They are as simple as washing hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol, if soap and water are not available. avoiding touching eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, avoiding close contact with people who are sick and covering the cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throwing the tissue in the trash. The key However, is to keep continuing with all these protocols even when one is vaccinated for both the times.
The third, fourth, fifth wave may be there. May not be there. But one must never neglect details. When everyone’s mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant as Colin Powell, the US retired four-star general says. That Maharashtra and Mumbai have such leaders is its good fortune.