A science magazine from the American Association for the Advancement of Science(AAAS), hailed ,Health Minister KK Shailaja for the meticulousness and preparedness with which she confronted covid outbreak that helped Kerala flatten the curve while rest of the country grappled with huge surges in that period. The article captioned to render tribute read : “India’s Covid Teacher”.
The magazine credits Minister KK Shilaja for spearheading the state’s mitigation efforts which was largely possible by her foresight and the kind of valour she showed in the situation, wrote Public Health Foundation of India Director, K Sreenath Reddy, in the report. The article also placed Kerala at advantage of having highly literate population and robust public health system - factors which helped deal with the pandemic better.
Having a former science teacher for health minister benefitted the state at time of unprecedented crisis, said Reddy. Dealing with a more lethal Nipah virus in 2018 worked to bolster the minister’s confidence, said the magazine. Overwhelming support for the primary health systems from all quarters, unaffected by political differences went a long way to help state battle the virus effectively, it added.
The minister while acknowledging the praise said she had only acted with responsibility expected in the circumstance and that the thousands of frontline health workers who rose to the situation, made Kerala a model to emulate in the public health sector.
