Covid-19: India asks states to set up makeshift hospitals, form special teams

Amid a rise in Covid-19 cases across the country, Indian government on Saturday advised states and union territories to ensure preparedness. The government asked them to start action for setting up makeshift hospitals and constitute special teams to monitor patients in home isolation.

“To address a potential surge in cases, with a view to ensure preparedness, states are advised to initiate creation of field/makeshift hospitals to augment the availability of health infrastructure. This can be done with coordination with DRDO and CSIR as well as the private sector, corporations, NGOs, etc,” Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said in a letter to chief secretaries of all states and UTs.

“This will aid the process of rapid creation of field hospitals or temporary hospital set ups. States may also consider leveraging hotel rooms and other accommodation linked with the Covid dedicated hospitals in government and private sector to cater to patients having mild to moderate symptoms of Covid-19, as was also done in some states during the earlier surge in cases,” he added.

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The Union Health Secretary also asked all states and UTs to operationalise control rooms at district/sub-district level and revisit the Covid dedicated health infrastructure.

“Special teams be constituted to monitor all home isolation cases, call centres/control rooms must aid outbound calling for monitoring such patients and ensuring that all such cases can be shifted to an appropriate health facility through dedicated ambulances,” the letter said.

“All states must ensure that control rooms at district level or sub-district/ward level are made functional,” it added.

To ensure operational readiness, states have been requested to revisit the existing Covid dedicated health infrastructure.

They have also been advised to be prepared with a sufficient number of quarantine facilities.

The letter also said that India’s case trajectory is also showcasing an upward trend with 16,764 cases reported on December 31, highest-ever single-day rise in the past 70 days. India on Saturday reported 22,775 new cases of Covid-19. The country has reported 1,431 Omicron cases.

• India