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Case Of Mistaken Identity: Unrelated Video Shared As Doctor Giving Medical Advice Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
Writer: Aditi Chattopadhyay
Aditi, part of the fact checking team of The Logical Indian likes to read, write, cook and laugh, in short live life as it is supposed to be. What makes her fascinated is to discover the truth behind a story and more often than not, it is either fact or myth at the end.
Maharashtra, 2 Sep 2020 11:26 AM GMT | Updated 2 Sep 2020 11:58 AM GMT
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The Logical Indian Fact Check team investigates the claim that Video shows Dr Kelkar from Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune.
A WhatsApp Forward claims that "600 doctors from Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune who have been treating COVID-19 patients" are unaffected because they had been practising a "5-7 mins exercise". The messages have been attributed to "Dr Kelkar" who has been claimed to be an "Onco Surgeon & CEO of the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital".
The message is being circulated with apparently a video of Dr Kelkar explaining the exercise.
600 doctors from Dinanath Mangeshkar hospital, Pune who r treating Covid 19 patients daily are doing it. Not a single doctor got infected.
— 🇮🇳 सत्यम, शिवम, सुंदरम 🇮🇳 (@SatyshivS) July 2, 2020
It's just a 5 mins procedure. Why not to tryhttps://t.co/oGsOqnyEyv https://t.co/exXl4jWYXc
600 doctors from Dinanath Mangeshkar hospital who r treating Covid 19 patients daily ,are doing it ..anterior nasal wash..on daily basis for the last 3 months.
— Ashish Sethi (@ashishsethi1968) July 12, 2020
Not a single doctor got infected ..(who are doing it regularly!)
18 doctors got infected who were not doing जलनेती.
Claims:
1) A video shows Dr Kelkar from Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune.
2) The claim that 600 doctors treating COVID-19 are practising 5-7 min exercise and none of them have contracted the COVID-19 infection.
Fact Check:
1) A video shows Dr Kelkar from Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune.
A Reverse image on Yandex search of a screenshot from the viral video showed that the man in the video is actually S. Prakash, CEO of See Change, a company which provides Coaching and Training Services as a Knowledge Management Partner(KMP).
A Youtube video was found where Prakash can be heard speaking in Tamil. The video was uploaded by See Change's channel. A link to the company's website was found in the description of the video.
The Logical Indian reached out to M. K. Anand, the co-founder of the company who identified the person in the viral video as his partner S. Prakash. "The video is being circulated on WhatsApp attributing it to doctors of different names. Prakash is not a doctor," he replied on being asked if he has seen the viral video.
The Logical Indian then spoke to S. Prakash, who confirmed that it was him in the viral video.
"The video was originally made by me. It is a simple exercise that I have learnt long ago which I found to be beneficial and hence shared through YT platform," he said.
"It has since gone viral through WA and through several YT channels. But the names being ascribed to are Dr. Bajaj (Cardio Surgeon) and Dr. Kelkar (Oncologist)!" he added.
Below is a comparison of S. Prakash from the company's website (right) and the viral video (left):
Another viral video was found on Youtube with the title "This is from Dr Bajaj. MD, DM. Earlier head of Cardiology in Batras Hospital."
Below is a comparison of S. Prakash from the viral video (right) and Dr Bajaj from Batras Hospital (left):
Therefore, this claim is false. It is not Dr Kelkar in the video.
2) The claim that 600 doctors treating COVID-19 are practising 5-7 min exercise and none of them has contracted the COVID-19 infection.
A keyword search on Youtube led to a video where Dr Kelkar explains the exercise mentioned in the WhatsApp Forward.
The exercise according to the video is called Jal Neti. It is an old technique used to clean the respiratory system and remove toxins from the nasal passage.
In a separate video, which was uploaded on July 7, Dr Kelkar was asked about the Jal Neti practice introduced in his hospital. The video was uploaded by the youtube channel of the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital And Research Center.
The doctor clarified that only 600 people of the total 4000 staff had come forward back in March 2020, to practise Jal Neti. According to him, these 600 people consisted of "about 100 doctors, about 150 to 200 nurses, the remaining were ward boys, Ayas, Cleaning staff and security Personnel."
"These 600 healthcare workers had been practising Jal Neti for the last 3 months and none of them contracted COVID," he said. He added 25 staff members of the hospital who were not a part of the Jal Neti practise had contracted a mild form of the infection.
The video description, however, mentions a disclaimer which clearly states that "the video is for public education in pandemic times. It is made based on available medical literature and our short experience."
It adds that the content of the video is "not a substitute for proper medical advice, should you need one."
Below is a comparison of S. Prakash from the viral video (right) and Dr Kelkar (left):
Dr Kelkar has definitely claimed that 600 healthcare workers who practised Jal Neti in Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune did not get infected from COVID-19 as of July 2020. However, the man in the viral video is not Dr Dhananjay Kelkar.
If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.
Also Read: Fact Check: Old Photo Shared As Hindu Doctor Cremated By Muslims In Pune
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