A day after the Uttar Pradesh government ordered an intensive lockdown of all the Covid-19 hot spots in the state, the Ghaziabad health department roped in about 500 teams to take up surveillance exercise in 13 areas, which have been completely sealed since April 9. The officials said that the teams will visit each of the houses in the 13 hot spots and collect micro-level details.
This activity is in addition to the ongoing containment activity in areas, from where cases of Covid-19 have been reported. Several teams comprising about 200 persons are already working as a part of the containment exercise.
“Apart from the containment exercise, we have roped in about 500 teams, comprising three members each, for the 13 hot spot areas. They will visit about 50 houses per day in these areas, unlike 100 houses taken up by the containment teams. This surveillance will be more intensive. As a part of a prescribed format, the teams will note down replies about any resident having foreign history in past the 15 days. The teams will also note down details of any flu-like cases prevalent in family and the contacts of Covid-19 positive patients,” said Dr NK Gupta, chief medical officer(CMO). He added that the newly initiated surveillance activity and the ongoing containment activity will go on simultaneously.
The surveillance teams will also make residents aware about the importance of hand washing and social distancing.“The team members are all trained. In their report, cases falling under the category of severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) will be referred to the nearest government healthcare facility. This surveillance exercise will be more intensive than what is done by teams under the containment exercise,” Dr Gupta added.
{{/usCountry}}The surveillance teams will also make residents aware about the importance of hand washing and social distancing.“The team members are all trained. In their report, cases falling under the category of severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) will be referred to the nearest government healthcare facility. This surveillance exercise will be more intensive than what is done by teams under the containment exercise,” Dr Gupta added.
{{/usCountry}}Under the containment exercise, which was initiated since Covid-19 cases started to emerge in Ghaziabad, the officials have so far catered to a population of about 5.46 lakh persons in the 13 identified hot spots.
The teams are also involved in putting up stickers outside the homes of persons under home quarantine and also revisiting them, once the home isolation is complete.The newly formed surveillance teams will now revisit and intensify activities in 13 hot spot areas since the intensive lockdown was announced on April 8.
As per official figures, the Ghaziabad district till the evening of April 9 has 25 Covid-19 positive cases, while three of them have already been discharged from hospitals.
According to the officials of the state health department, the total number of Covid-19 positive cases in the state stood at 410 till the evening of April 9 and 221 of them were linked to Tablighi Jamaat. They added that 31 patients were discharged from hospitals while four deaths have taken so far in the state.
“The chief minister has given directions on Thursday for a review of the door-step delivery measures and also of various quarantine facilities. He has also asked for an audit of the ventilator facilities. The hot spots have been identified in order to reduce the impact of Covid-19,” said Awanish Awasthi, UP’s additional chief secretary (home).