Health Secretary directs states to make district-wise prospective plan to combat COVID-19

By Priyanka Sharma
New Delhi [India], June 8 (ANI): In view of the lockdown being eased and curbs being lifted, Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan has directed all states to make a “district-wise prospective plan” for the coming months to combat COVID-19.
The Health Secretary also directed the states to involve the elected representatives in the rural areas for cooperating with the district health authorities for confidence building and timely accessing of available health services.
In a meeting held through video conferencing with all states and union territories, Sudan discussed main issues such as widespread coronavirus infection in densely populated urban areas; importance of house-to-house surveys; prompt testing followed by isolation and clinical management of cases and containment strategies.
She directed states to take in the containment zones for case management and buffer zones surveillance activities and promotion of COVID appropriate behaviour and reminded to activate the fever clinics for detection of SARI/ILI cases in the buffer zones.
“Areas that need constant attention included active house-to-house survey for timely detection; augmentation of the survey teams; efficient ambulance management; efficient triaging of patients at the hospitals and bed management; clinical management of the hospitalised cases through rotational 24×7 teams to ensure reduction in the fatality rates they were also advised to ensure that the testing results were returned by the labs in time for ensuring early identification and timely treatment,” Sudan said.
She advised the states on adequate planning for health infrastructure human resource management for the containment of COVID-19.
The Centre has asked the municipal authorities to take leadership and put the whole municipal infrastructure for containment measures using the ‘whole of government approach’.
According to the Union Health Ministry, so far, a total of 1,24,430 people has been cured. 5,137 patients were cured in the last 24 hours. This takes the total recovery rate to 48.49 per cent. The total number of active cases is now 1,24,981. (ANI)