Odisha: 7,000 unemployed health workers to be engaged at Covid Care Homes

The Odisha government has decided to engage around 7,000 trained health professionals, mainly auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs), temporarily to run Covid Care Homes being set up in 6,798 gram panchayats across the state, an official said on Wednesday.

Trained workforce will be required for smooth management of the Covid Care Homes (CCHs) where mild and symptomatic cases will be lodged for observation, Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, PK Mohapatra, said.

“About 7,000 trained health workforce will be appointed temporarily for three months or till operation of the CCHs,” Mohapatra said.

The decision was taken on Tuesday, in view of the detection of a large number of Covid positive cases in the state, he said.

Odisha has 4,933 active cases on Wednesday.

Mohapatra said that the base-level health activity in these CCHs will be managed by unemployed trained and registered ANMs, and each of them will be given Rs 850 per day as remuneration, he said.

However, if so many ANMs are not available, unemployed registered staff nurses or pharmacists can be engaged and they will be paid 1,000 per day as remuneration, Mohapatra said.

The state government has also made it clear that the engagement is for three months or till the CCHs are functional, whichever is earlier.

The government has decided that each CCHs will have about 20 beds to house suspected Covid-19 cases, the senior officer added.