Quarantine centres in the city are on the verge of saturation due to a sharp rise in coronavirus cases, forcing health officials to seriously consider the option of allowing patients with mild symptoms to opt for home quarantine.
While critically-ill patients with co-morbidities are being admitted to the 300-bed State COVID-19 Hospital functioning out of the SVIMS campus, those who are not in the high-risk group but have tested positive are being admitted to the 356-bed Ruia GGH. For mild and asymptomatic cases, the district administration has readied 3,000 beds at Srinivasam, Vishnu Nivasam, and Padmavati Nilayam pilgrim accommodation complexes in Tirupati. The number will go up to 5,000 if beds in dormitories are also taken into account.
A recent call by Collector Bharat Narayan Gupta to COVID-19-positive persons to adopt home quarantine assumes significance at this juncture. Speaking to The Hindu on Friday, Mr. Gupta explained the logistical hassles being faced by frontline warriors in ensuring food, accommodation and sterilisation at these centres, and trying to work to the utmost satisfaction of inmates. The bed occupancy rate is also high in these centres, with 300 cases being detected every day.
“If home quarantine is not encouraged at this time, even 10,000 beds may prove to be insufficient,” he said.
Health officials said that people can get their samples tested at any of the six triage locations in the district, and if tested positive, can simply opt for home quarantine by taking a COVID-19 kit. Those wishing to opt for home quarantine must have an attached bathroom to their bedroom, and there should be no children aged under 10 or elders aged over 60 living with them.
“In home quarantine, the personal care by family members will give much-needed confidence to the patients which will help them make a quick recovery,” an official said.
Stigma prevails
However, there has been stiff resistance from neighbours to home quarantine in some cases. “The situation is bad in apartments and gated communities, where neighbours stonewall any such proposals without giving a patient hearing,” said Joint Collector V. Chandramouli. He reiterated that there was no need to stigmatise all those who merely test positive for COVID-19, as they need not be equated at par with patients who are admitted to hospital with grave symptoms.
