Activate war rooms, care centres, Health Secretary directs Collectors

With the new COVID-19 management protocol in place, Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan has written to all district Collectors and senior health officials to ensure strict monitoring of the pandemic cases in home isolation and proper clinical management in the State.

He stated that the regulatory officials should not hesitate to repeatedly penalise the defaulters and the focus is to ensure a change in behaviour beyond awareness by adequate and sustained information, education and communication campaign including local announcements and coordinated efforts involving all stakeholders especially the connected associations including market associations and resident welfare associations.

He stated that people who get tested should be advised to self-isolate till the results come to prevent further spread in cases. It is important to strictly monitor home quarantine and follow up on them telephonically on a daily basis.

The Health Secretary stated that 1.15 lakh available beds for COVID-19 treatment should be fully operational and additional 50,000 beds, especially COVID-19 care centres including interim COVID-19 care centres adjacent to habitations and streets or wards should be made fully operational. The war rooms should be fully activated and functional in the districts.

He further instructed that adequate screening centres should be opened and made operational to facilitate operationalising of the updated protocol and adequate COVID-19 care centres are made operational. The district Collectors should ensure that adequate human resources are deployed at the screening centres with the standard blood test and other equipment.

The letter stated that the Indian Medicine and Siddha CCC also should be operationalised to ensure that those who wish to use such streams under the supervision of the respective streams of doctors and those with asymptomatic and mild diseases are provided access to it.