{"id":219277,"date":"2021-05-21T17:03:11","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T11:33:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=219277"},"modified":"2021-05-22T10:40:47","modified_gmt":"2021-05-22T05:10:47","slug":"covid-19-pandemic-urgent-need-for-a-stricter-lockdown-association-of-medical-specialists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/covid-19-pandemic-urgent-need-for-a-stricter-lockdown-association-of-medical-specialists\/","title":{"rendered":"Covid-19 Pandemic: Urgent Need For A Stricter Lockdown &#8211; Association Of Medical Specialists"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"s2\">&#8220;We plead all stakeholders involved in controlling the current pandemic to consider longer and strategic lockdown protocols (minimum of 14 days continuous) based on expert advice, before it is too late,&#8221;<\/span> the <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s=Association+of+Medical+Specialists\">Association of Medical Specialists<\/a><\/span> has said today. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Curfew-Covid-19-Sri-Lanka-.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-209062\" src=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Curfew-Covid-19-Sri-Lanka-.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Curfew-Covid-19-Sri-Lanka-.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Curfew-Covid-19-Sri-Lanka--300x163.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Curfew-Covid-19-Sri-Lanka--768x418.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>We publish below the statement in full:<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">We, as the Association of Medical Specialists are gravely concerned about the imminent surge of <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s=COVID-19\">COVID-19<\/a><\/span> positive patients to catastrophic proportions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">While acknowledging the efforts made by the government and the Ministry of health for getting ready to handle massive influx of patients, we wish to stress that no country in the world has been able to control the pandemic by expanding bed strength, oxygen supply, ventilators or ICUs. This is a temporary and quite expensive solution useful only in managing the symptomatic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">Had improved infrastructure been the answer, no developed country would have had such high caseloads or fatalities that we have seen in the recent past.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">Sustainable, long lasting and speedy solution would be adherence to accepted social, behavioral and hygienic preventive measures known to all to reduce and eventually to stop transmission. As all individuals do not follow the advice of health care professionals, time is ripe to modify their behaviour by imposing certain restrictions. This view is shared by the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) and other medical academic bodies, two world renowned Sri Lankan scientists, Dr Malik Pieris and Prof. Kamani Mendis and another wider group of experts (all the letters are attached).<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">We believe that although such measures could bring greater hardships mostly to poorer segments of the society, scientific methods should be adopted for an effective and productive outcome at this critical juncture.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">We plead all stakeholders involved in controlling the current pandemic to consider longer and strategic lockdown protocols (minimum of 14 days continuous) based on expert advice, before it is too late.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\">Yours sincerely,<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\"><span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>Dr LakKumar Fernando <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Dr R Gnanasekeram<br \/>\nPresident-AMS <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>General Secretary-AMS<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\"><br \/>\nCC: 1. Hon. Mahinda Rajapaksa, Prime Minister of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Lanka<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>2. Hon. Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Minister of Health<br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>3. Hon. Dr. Sudarshini Fernandopulle, State Minister of Primary Health Care,<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Epidemics and COVID Disease Control<br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>4. Hon. Prof. Channa Jayasumana, State Minister of Production, Supply and <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Regulation of Pharmaceuticals <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>5. Dr. P B Jayasundara, Secretary to HE The President<br \/>\n<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>6. General Shavendra Silva, WWV RWP RSP VSV USP ndc psc Mphil\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">Related posts:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"entry-title eltd-post-title\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/battle-against-covid-19-are-we-at-a-tipping-point-association-of-medical-specialists-asks-gota\/\">Battle Against Covid-19 \u2013 Are We At A \u201cTipping Point\u201d? \u2013 Association Of Medical Specialists Asks Gota<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p> [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":219166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,2186,1,2375],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-219277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colombotelegraph","category-featured-news","category-news","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.3 - 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