FAMILY Doctors Day is observed every year on May19. The theme this year was: ‘Frontline care provider for Covid-19 pandemic’ and their slogan was: ‘First to enter, and last to leave.’

In these testing times when the number of patients infected in Pakistan by the Covid-19 virus has crossed 46,000, it is family doctors who are manning their clinics and reassuring patients and at the same time spreading awareness about prevention of coronavirus.

A salute to all frontline health workers and family doctors for putting their lives at risk in the fight against Covid-19. They are more than visible in this battle and their contribution should be acknowledged.

Meanwhile, the President of the World Organisation of National Colleges and Academies of Family Physicians, Dr Donald Li, has urged family doctors to join the WONCA forum, and learn from the webinars held by it for family doctors to upgrade skills and practices to deal with the pandemic which has strained the health delivery system of even the advanced countries, let alone Pakistan.

The need for skills upgrade by family physicians is an absolute must as the general physicians are at the forefront everywhere in the world in the campaign against Covid-19.

Dr Hussain Bux Kolachi

Hyderabad

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2020