Low turnout of residents during first week of antigen testing in Ghaziabad

The turnout of people for Covid-19 antigen tests in Ghaziabad is at a dismal rate of about 32%, even as the health department had roped in seven teams which were

The turnout of people for Covid-19 antigen tests in Ghaziabad is at a dismal rate of about 32%, even as the health department had roped in seven teams which were expected to take up 6,300 samples in a span of six days, starting June 26. Health officials said the low turnout may affect their target of 4,000 tests per day, as directed for conduct during the special surveillance drive which started on July 2 on directions of the Uttar Pradesh government.

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Each of the seven teams, comprising two lab technicians and a lab assistant per team, has a capacity to conduct about 150 antigen tests per day. However, during the first six days of the drive, the teams could conduct only 2,056 tests.

“Out of the 2,056 antigen tests conducted during the week, 126 positive turned out positive. The teams have a potential to conduct 150 tests per day but there was low turnout of residents from areas like Indirapuram, Mirzapur, Vijay Nagar and Vaishali, and the like. This scenario could also affect our testing for the special surveillance drive which started on July 2,” said an officer from the district health department, requesting anonymity.

“There have been instances where the turnout of residents has been so low that some areas recorded a turnout of 12, while some recorded a turnout of 32, during the past two-three days. The teams had to sit idle and waited for residents to turn up,” the officer said.

According to officials, what is worse is that out of the total 2,056 antigen tests conducted during the week, about 850 tests were conducted at district MMG Hospital and Women’ Hospital, said officials. This meant that only about 1,200 tests were conducted in residential areas where people were expected to arrive and participate in Covid-19 testing.

“Testing during the first week has been low and we were expecting that more people will come and get themselves tested through antigen kits. We had already received 8,000 kits and 11,000 more arrived Thursday. So, during the surveillance drive, we are expecting that more tests will be taken up,” said Dr NK Gupta, chief medical officer, Ghaziabad.

“There were seven teams when antigen testing started on June 26. Now, we have added five more, to a total of 12. These include one team which will be deployed at MMG Hospital and Women’s Hospital each. We are also trying to rope in more lab technicians so that more testing can take place,” Dr Gupta added.

On Thursday, on the other hand, a total of 1,765, tests – 775 antigen and 990 RT-PCR tests – were conducted across Ghaziabad, of which 34 came out positive.

According to sources, one of the reasons the teams were able to conduct so many tests in a single day may be that they are testing all patients walking in to the Women’s Hospital and the MMG District Hospital, as well as their kin accompanying them.

Residents’ welfare associations (RWA) and councillors, meanwhile, said that they have no information about antigen tests being taken up and no officials approached them so far.

“We have no information about antigen testing taking place in our areas. Had RWAs been involved, they would have spread awareness in their highrises by putting up information on notice boards and would have urged residents to come forward. But there has been no information given to us about tests being conducted,” said Alok Kumar, founder member of federation of association of apartment owners.

This was reiterated by Colonel (retired) TP Tyagi, the president of flat owners’ federation, who said: “We have not received any communication from the administration or the health department to help them out in the antigen test drive. It seems that officials have sidelined the RWAs. But it is evident that without peoples’ participation, no such initiatives will succeed.”

“There is a trust deficit among residents and also fear of Covid-19 which is why they are not inclined to take up tests. They know that if they turn positive, they will be admitted directly to government hospitals, where facilities are inadequate. Above all, the administration should hold meetings with local councillors and take their help, as they can immensely help in bringing residents together for taking up tests,” said Rajendra Tyagi, councillor from Raj Nagar.

District magistrate Ajay Shankar Pandey said officials were trying hard to achieve the target of 4,000 tests per day during the special surveillance drive.

“To increase participation, we will be roping in RWAs, councillors and even NGOs to help create awareness among residents and to encourage them to come forward for testing for Covid-19. The surveillance drive is for the benefit of residents as early testing will help us detect cases early and take up proper treatment,” he added.

Under the drive, the department has been given a target of conducting 1,000 RT-PCR tests and 3,000 antigen tests per day for 10 days, till July 12.

For the purpose of surveillance, the district has deployed 2,029 surveillance teams, which shall take up household surveys to identify patients with co-morbid conditions such as influenza-like illness (ILI) or severe acute respiratory infection (SARI). These teams have so far covered a total of 1,35,460 households in the district.z