A district-level COVID-19 War Room where information related to bed and oxygen availability in both government and private hospitals and guidance to patients on admissions in hospitals will start functioning in two days in the district, said S. Muthusamy, Minister for Housing and Urban Development, here on Thursday.
The Minister along with Collector C. Kathiravan and Superintendent of Police P. Thangadurai chaired a meeting with officials at the Collectorate on the steps needed to be taken to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the district.
Addressing mediapersons, Mr. Muthusamy said that the war room in each shift will have 10 members, including officials, a doctor, nurse and a psychiatrist, who will provide details on the bed availability in various government and private hospitals in the district and help the patients on admissions.
Also, counselling will be provided to the callers to allay their fear about the virus and provide necessary guidance.
The Minister said that the war room will function round-the-clock and the contact numbers of the officials will be made available to the public in two days. Also, a taluk-level war room with five-member teams will be established to guide the patients on availability of beds, he added.
Mr. Muthusamy said that many failed to isolate themselves in their homes, thus spreading the virus to their family members and neighbours.
“As many as 60 educational institutions across the district will be converted into Covid Care Centres and facilities will be improved on a par with hospitals”, he added.
Regarding the delay in getting RT-PCR test results, he said that steps are being taken to ensure that results are available within 24 hours. He called upon the people to venture out only for emergencies and for purchasing essentials and asked them to cooperate in bringing the virus spread under control.
