Emergency Response to COVID-19 Surge in India

Project Report | Nov 23, 2021
Final Report: Response to COVID-19 Surge in India

By Caitlin Bartkus | Associate Specialist, Resource Development

Our team provided oxygen and medical supplies

This will be our final update as International Medical Corps’ emergency response in India draws to a close.

To continue supporting International Medical Corps, please visit our “Emergency Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19)” project to learn about our global response to the pandemic.

Learn more about our Coronavirus response here: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-the-coronavirus-2019-ncov/

International Medical Corps responded to the devastating surge of COVID-19 in India – a country that has seen more than 34 million cases and more than 460,000 deaths. International Medical Corps partnered with local organizations to enhance critical-care capacity, strengthen infectious disease preparedness efforts and boost vaccination efforts, particularly in rural areas.

In Spring 2021, at the height of the surge, our team distributed critically needed oxygen supplies and equipment—including oxygen plants, cylinders and concentrators—to hospitals and COVID-19 treatment facilities in 11 states. These items provided immediate support to more than 40 facilities caring for severely ill patients.

As the number of infections and hospitalizations declined, International Medical Corps and our local partners continued to procure and distribute additional oxygen equipment and supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE), medical supplies (including syringes, needles and more) and essential medications to support patients with underlying medical conditions, like diabetes, that lead to higher risk for serious complications from COVID-19.

Our team distributed more than 1,400 items of oxygen supplies, equipment and materials, supporting nearly 50 healthcare facilities and COVID-19 treatment centers across 17 states.

Additionally, our team provided support to our local partners to enhance their immunization efforts. One local partner, Doctors For You, deployed teams throughout the country to reach rural populations struggling to access the vaccine. The team provided more than 5 million vaccine doses.

While our response is drawing to a close, we will continue to work closely with our partners to further enhance vaccination efforts by delivering essential supplies and equipment, including cold-chain storage, vaccine carriers and mobile vaccination units.

International Medical Corps is grateful to GlobalGiving and its community of donors for raising awareness of our response efforts to the devastating COVID-19 surge in India.

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Aug 23, 2021
Delivering Lifesaving Equipment and Supplies

By Phalaen Chang | Project Assistant

Our team helped provide essential oxygen supplies.

In April and May, India faced a devastating second wave of COVID-19 infections, rattling their healthcare systems as sick people lined up outside of hospitals, cemeteries ran out of space and bodies started washing up on the Ganges River. At the peak of that wave, India was averaging 300,000 new cases a day and 2,000 deaths. Overall cases have been steadily declining since the end of May, several states have continued to see major surges in infections. Kerala, for example, announced a lockdown on July 14 to help curb the spread.

Since the start of the surge, International Medical Corps has been working with local partners across the country to provide critically needed equipment and supplies—including oxygen generators, oxygen delivery and storage supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE), medications and more—to hospitals and COVID-19 treatment facilities.

One of our local partners, Doctors For You, has collaborated with our team to reach more than 25 health facilities with essential oxygen supplies and equipment. "We are proud to be associated with International Medical Corps at the time when India has been struggling for oxygen to address COVID-19,” says Dr. Ravikant, Founder, Doctors for You.

Together, we are also working to address urgent needs related to essential medications as hospitals across the country have reported severe shortages in medications needed to treat COVID-19 and many underlying conditions, including diabetes.

This COVID-19 surge in India has demonstrated the risk new and highly infectious variants pose, especially in places with low vaccination rates. In response, the government has launched an effort to vaccinate 950 million people by the end of 2021.

International Medical Corps continues to coordinate with local partners to address immediate needs, provide supplies and equipment, and help healthcare facilities prepare for and respond to any subsequent surges of infections, as well as support the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines and address needs around vaccine hesitancy and access.

Thanks to the support of the GlobalGiving community and other donors, we have been able to work with local partners in India to quickly deliver lifesaving equipment and supplies.

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