National Level Post-Covid Mind-Body Care Centre is the Need of the Hour: Dr Alok Mishra
DR ALOK MISHRA is a renowned psychologist and post-doctoral fellow from AIIMS Delhi. He is presently Joint Secretary of Association for Indian Universities (AIU). He was also CEO of Brain Research Foundation of India. Mishra is among the world’s prominent brain analysts. He has analysed the brain behaviour of people like President APJ Abdul Kalam, the Dalai Lama, famous cricketer Virat Kohli and Kiran Bedi, to name a few. In an interview with MOHD NAUSHAD KHAN, he said there is a need for a model for post-Covid mind-body care which must include not just the patients but also the frontline workers.
What was your experience as a Covid positive patient?
One of the biggest challenges for me was of accepting that I have been infected with Covid-19 because I have been constantly working even during the lockdown and there have been many times when I felt the symptoms of Covid but never did the report came positive and also because I was following all the protocols necessary to prevent it. After I tested positive for Covid on November 11 and my O2 level gone below the required level, the doctors advised me to get admitted but I convinced them to allow home quarantine to me by signing an undertaking and self-isolated myself.
My situation was still normal till 16th but then the fever became constant and my family decided to admit me into AIIMS Trauma Centre where I was shifted to ICU as my health was constantly declining.
I think that there are multiple challenges a person goes through during Covid, both physical and mental. Physically there was too much body weakness as it became difficult for me to even walk for 10 meters and I needed some assistance, while mentally the first fear was of infecting my family members and then the loneliness, fear of death, anxiety, etc. Although being a psychologist, I have been able to overcome these fears but these needs to be given attention as a lot of patients were going through these problems and not everyone is capable of overcoming them. I am highly thankful to Prof. (Dr.) Randeep Guleria, Director, AIIMS; Prof. (Dr.) Rajesh Malhotra, Chief, JPNA Trauma Centre; Dr. Neeraj Nischal, Prof. (Dr.) Richa Pathak, Dr. Akashneel Bhattacharya and all staff members for their support, better treatment and care.
What was your observation during your stay in Covid ward?
After a couple of days in the ICU, I began to feel better but realised that the main impact of this viral disease is on the human mind. A sense of gloom and depression sets in. I decided to use my psychological knowledge to overpower this emotional obstacle. So, every night I began writing notes in my diary. I scripted positive thoughts as they can help overcome any negativity. It helped me steadily recuperate and strong enough to walk around in the ward. That’s when I saw that most patients were afflicted with the negative emotions of fear and distress that they would not recover from this crisis. Thus, the environment in the entire ward was depressing and low-spirited. I also sensed that there is a need to look after the health caregivers’ mental health as they are constantly working in this environment for the last 8-9 months and they also need positivity to work more efficiently.
I noticed that the morale of the health professionals like the doctors and nurses attending to the patients was also sinking. I thought that they should be fully motivated and appreciated if they have to continue their selfless service to the patients. As it is, wearing the cumbersome PPE uniform which does not allow them to drink or eat anything and bans them from going to the toilet is a tall order. So, I spoke with the patients and convinced them that we must acknowledge their services to us by greeting them cheerfully. So, I instilled the daily habit of clapping and welcoming whenever the medical or paramedical staff entered the ward.
Scientifically these acts stimulate the limbic system leading to the secretion of dopamine, endorphins, oxytocin, and serotonin that enhance the feelings of happiness, hope, and positivity. Regular practice of these gestures stimulates the acetylcholine release in the hippocampus that converts these experiences into long-term memory and becomes a part of the personality.
As a psychologist what kind of care do you think should be given to post-Covid patients?
There are quite a few aspects of this question. First, as the post-Covid effects are still not precisely known and a detailed study on this is still awaited, there is subjectivity to it. Secondly, there is a need for a model for post-Covid mind-body care which must include not just the patients but also the frontline workers as they are constantly working in these hard times and they need some rejuvenation to work efficiently. What the post-Covid programme must include is that detailed information about the post-Covid effects should be given to the patient, controlled yoga training, and regular psychological support.
In this aspect, I also wrote a proposal for developing a Global Post-Covid Mind-Body Rejuvenation Centre when I was admitted to the AIIMS Trauma Centre.
Can you tell us some more details about your Mind-Body Rejuvenation Centre?
The idea of this centre came to me when I was admitted to the AIIMS Trauma Centre as I was observing the situation there and I felt that there is an urgent need for this not just for the patients but for these frontline workers who are constantly working in these difficult times. The basic idea is to create a system where everyone from frontline workers to the patients feels positive and energised to cope with the present situation.
In the proposal sent to the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, I have stated that Corona warriors (healthcare givers) should get various kinds of bravery awards like the personnel of defence forces. A large proportion of healthcare workers including doctors are working in Covid hospitals on an ad hoc basis that does not give them the benefits of regular government employees. I emphasised the need to pass on these benefits to the ad hoc workers as well as their risk while serving Covid patients is at par with regular employees. In case of the unfortunate death of a health giver, his or her family should be adequately compensated and one of the family members should be given a government job.
For this, we are planning to give a bravery award to 11 people from AIIMS including Doctors, Nurses, Ward boys, etc. on January 26, 2021 to boost their morale which will work very positively for them and our whole healthcare system.
Do you think post-Covid care is going to be more challenging and what should be done to ensure more care post-Covid?
I think it will not be a correct statement to say that post-Covid care is more challenging than during Covid but it can be said that post-Covid care needs more attention in the present scenario. As the whole healthcare system is now focused on fighting Covid and saving lives, there is very little focus on the situation post-Covid and mental health of health caregivers, which certainly needs attention for not letting it become a crisis.
About the question of what can be done, I have already said that there is a need to develop a system or programme which must include all these aspects as I have mentioned and this can be done if all of us join hands together.
As a psychologist you have analysed the brains of renowned people. Can you please elaborate on that?
I have been working on brain analysis for the last 17 years and it was also part of my study during my Post-Doc in AIIMS. The basic purpose of this is to analyse the brain and understand the strong points of your brain. As every individual has some inborn talent and some talents that he acquires by working on it, what we do is get in the information of our inborn talents so that we can make it stronger by working on it and it can be very beneficial while choosing our career.
This study started around 2006-07 when we analysed the brain of recently joined IAS officers. Then later we also analysed the brains of the greatest minds of our country like late APJ Abdul Kalam, Virat Kohli, Kiran Bedi, Kamal Hasan, etc., which was also documented by National Geography channel and released.
On the educational front what are post-Covid Covid challenges and what would you like to suggest in this regard?
First, it’s very difficult to suggest the expiry of Covid-19 but our education system faced a lot of issues initially when the lockdown was put all over the country like the issue of digital infrastructure, the divide concerning digital education, etc, but slowly we are getting comfortable with the online medium. Although it can’t be said that the situation is perfect but we have improved a lot.
Concerning post-Covid challenges, I think a new debate on the issue of whether to get back to the physical medium or continuing with the online medium will come up shortly. Also, the issue of implementation of the New Education Policy needs to be looked into.
I think an open education system needs to be promoted, digital infrastructure must be strengthened, and Teacher-Guardian training concerning online education must be done.
Keeping all these points in mind, New Post-Covid Education policy must be formulated with a special focus on the implementation of the New Education Policy, 2020.
As you have been to too many prestigious Universities in the world, what do you think our Education Policy is lacking to come under the best University ranking?
I think we have a habit of blaming the system or the environment that is around us for our failures but the first step is to realise the individual responsibility and work ourselves to make our Universities the best in the world. We have been constantly producing one of the best minds in the world and our people have been leading the world in most of the areas including business, education, space, etc. Obviously, the system needs change but there is also a need to realise our capability and responsibility towards our institutions and if we all work together the time is not very far when we also have our own Oxford, Harvard, and so on.