Mumbai: Amid the possibility of a third wave, the Union Health Ministry on Sunday released SOP on COIVD 19 containment and management in pre-urban, rural and tribal areas.
The administration from these areas will plan for minimum 30-bedded Covid Care Centres (CCC) for asymptomatic cases with comorbidities or isolation cases where home isolation is not feasible. CCC will be established near primary health centres, and will utilise panchayat buildings, community halls, school grounds and schools. The village health sanitation and nutrition committee (VHSNC) will mobilise resources to procure oximeters and thermometers.
The ministry has suggested that in every village active surveillance should be done for influenza-like illness, severe acute respiratory infections periodically by accredited social health activists (ASHA) with help of VHSNC. Symptomatic cases can be triaged at village level by teleconsultation with community health officers and cases with comorbidity and low oxygen saturation should be sent to higher centres. Every sub-centre should run an Influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) out-patient department for dedicated time slots and days.
Further, the human resources to man the CCC facilities may be drawn from VHSNC and other sources. Qualified AYUSH doctors, final year AYUSH students and final year BSc nurses may be considered to run the CCCs.
The nodal officers will be trained in performing Rapid Antigen Detection kit. The volunteers selected by VHSNC will be trained in the basics of COVID, infection prevention control, use of personal protective equipment, medical waste management, monitoring of temperature using an infrared thermometer, recording respiratory rate, use of pulse oximetry and identification of early warning signs and referral.
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