District Collector S. Suhas on Monday held a videoconference with panchayat secretaries and asked them to intensify preventive measures against COVID-19 and enforce quarantine norms as per the State government’s orders.
A ward-level list had to be prepared on the number of people under observation, he said.
A review meeting should be held to take stock of the situation. ASHA workers, ward members, Kudumbashree activists, volunteers, and anganwadi employees can form a committee to ensure that people under quarantine are following norms.
Those who have returned from countries abroad and those who were found to be in contact with COVID-19 patients have to be strictly under observation for 14 days. He said the names of those who were reluctant to follow norms should be given to the police.
He also told officials to ensure that food was available to those in quarantine. For this, panchayats could utilise own funds or could find a sponsor, he added.
The Collector also asked officials to get a list of people who had other medical needs. Ward-level squads should be directed to get these details.
In case of any COVID-19 symptoms, the first consultation should be with the doctor at the primary health centre over telephone. A person with COVID-19 symptoms should not directly go to any hospital, the Collector said.
In case the patient gets critical, the Health Department will send an ambulance to take the patient to the treatment centre.
It needed to be ensured that those under observation were not under mental stress, the Collector said. For this, counsellors’ services should be made available.
He asked panchayat secretaries to regulate the use of mask among the public.
