An audio clip that many have attributed to the voice of noted cardiac surgeon and Narayana Health founder Dr Devi Shetty has been circulating in the media. However, the hospital has clarified that this is not Shetty and it has been wrongly attributed to him.
“Please note that audio clip is not of Dr. Devi Shetty, Chairman and Founder, Narayana Health. It has been incorrectly attributed to him,” Narayana Health tweeted Thursday morning.
Please note that audio clip is not of Dr. Devi Shetty, Chairman and Founder, Narayana Health. It has been incorrectly attributed to him.
— Narayana Health (@NarayanaHealth) March 19, 2020
The clip had been made to seem as if it had been sent by the Rotary Club Hospital in Chennai.
In the clip, the voice claims that there is a “peculiar problem” in India and urges “everyone who has the coronavirus or is suspected of it, should not go get it tested.”
“India has 1.4 billion people and the kits we have are less than 150,000 at this point of time,” the voice said.
The clip, which has been shared on news platforms and wrongly credited to Shetty, goes on to describe the day to-day symptoms a person who has been infected by COVID-19 may experience, including fatigue, mild fever, a cough and itchy throat in the initial three days to gastrointestinal issues, like diarrhea or cramps, body pain and continued fever in days four to six or seven. It also claims that by day eight, you may notice your symptoms starting to reduce.
The voice claims that only someone whose symptoms of fever persist beyond day eight or nine should get themselves tested. “If you feel like it is going to worsen than improve, then you call the COVID-19 helpline and go get it tested,” it said.
As of Thursday morning, a total of 13,316 samples from 12,426 individuals have been tested for SARS-CoV2, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research. The number of positive cases in the country is currently at 168.