4 new screening centres to reduce rush at hospitals

According to a Corporation official, the patients who are tested positive for would be taken to the screening centres rather than taking them directly to the hospitals. “Once the test results are released, the positive persons will be screened for symptoms at the screening centres. If the patients are asymptomatic, they will be taken to the COVID care centres or sent to home isolation. Only patients with comorbid conditions or severe symptoms will be taken to hospitals,” the official said.

“Of the four screening centres, two are located in North Chennai region, while South and Central region have one screening centre each. This has reduced the waiting time,” the official added.

Earlier, the field-level officials of the civic body were taking positive persons to the hospitals, which made admission process difficult. This had created unrest among the patients waiting in ambulances, with some of them roaming freely inside the hospital premises. Screening of the patients was also done at the hospitals.

The civic body has also devised a case tracking and referral plan to treat the patients. It has directed the field-level officials to inspect the houses of asymptomatic patients, who are certified fit for home isolation by the screening centres, to assess the facilities required for home isolation of patients.

A field-level official said that it would take at least two days to track positive patients and shift them to hospitals or COVID care centres. “Once the government releases the list of positive patients, it takes at least one day to reach us. At that time, we would be taking the patients based on the test results released a day or two earlier. We cannot take patients on the same day when they test positive,” he said.