The Pandemic, Infodemic and Peoples Resilience in India - A Viewpoint (Preprint)

UNSTRUCTURED The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), commonly known as COVID-19 is causing widespread fear and stress. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected everyone, everywhere, and created systemic inequities leaving no one behind. In India alone, there were more than 34,094,373 confirmed cases and 452,454 deaths reported as of 19th October 2021. However, around May 2021, the daily number of new cases were crossing 400,000, seriously hampering the healthcare system. Despite of the devastating situation, the public response was seen through their efforts coming forward with innovative ideas for potential ways to handle the pandemic, for instance dealing with shortage of oxygen cylinder, shortage of hospital bed availabilities etc. With the increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates following September 2021, although the daily number of new cases was diminishing, the country is conducting preventive and preparatory measures for the third wave. Through this article, we propose the pivotal role of public participation and digital solutions to re-establish our society and describe how the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can support eHealth initiatives, and mitigate infodemics to tackle post-pandemic situation. This viewpoint reflects that the COVID-19 pandemic has featured a need to bring together findings across disciplines, build greater coherence within the field and be a driving force for multi-sectoral, cross-disciplinary collaboration. The article highlights the needs to develop digital solutions which can be applied to pandemic situations and be reprocessed to focus on other SDGs. Promoting the use of digital healthcare solutions towards preventive measures can be enhanced by public empowerment and engagement. Wearable technologies can be efficiently used for remote monitoring or home-care for patients suffering from chronic conditions. Furthermore, development and implementation of informational tools can aid to improve well-being and dissolve panic-ridden behaviors contributing towards infodemics. Thus, a call to action for an observatory of digital health initiatives on COVID-19 is required to share the main conclusions and lessons learned in terms of resilience, crisis mitigation, and preparedness.