The Chennai Corporation’s tele-counselling services for persons reaching out with concerns during the lockdown has been receiving an average of 300 calls every day.
The helpline (4612 2300), manned by volunteers from Loyola College and the Network of Professional Social Workers, had initially received calls from persons who had been placed under home quarantine. “Over the last week however, we’ve seen an increase in calls from the families of persons testing positive for COVID-19 or even the patients themselves. Many family members are anxious or stressed about infecting other people in their localities and we immediately reassure them as well as put them in touch with counsellors,” said Gladston Xavier, associate professor, social work department of Loyola College who has been coordinating this initiative. The volunteers had also initially been making calls to persons who were under home quarantine, to address any queries that they might have. “Ever since containment zones have been marked, we are receiving queries from residents there as well. If they have any psycho-social concerns, our counsellors address it and for other queries, they are connected to the officials in-charge,” Mr. Gladston added.
As of 11 a.m. on Wednesday, 86 persons have recovered in Chennai and 263 people have been hospitalised, data from the Chennai Corporation indicated. Ambattur Zone recorded its first positive case on Tuesday.
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Mask challenge
In a bid to encourage more people to wear masks when they step outdoors, the corporation had across its social media platforms, asked residents to ‘Be a superhero!’ and wear a mask. As part of this campaign, the corporation has now initiated the ‘Wear a mask’ challenge online and has asked residents to post a selfie of them wearing a mask as well as tag their friends to take up the challenge.